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Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage
The ungulates include some of the largest land animals and, in consequence, they cannot avoid climatic stress as do small mammals. A great deal of information concerning the physiology of thermoregulation in domestic ungulates is available but relatively little is known about thermoregulation in wil...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Department of Biological Sciences
2015
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| _version_ | 1867613290893410305 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina |
| author2 | Louw, G N |
| author_browse | Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina Louw, G N |
| author_facet | Louw, G N Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina |
| author_sort | Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | The ungulates include some of the largest land animals and, in consequence, they cannot avoid climatic stress as do small mammals. A great deal of information concerning the physiology of thermoregulation in domestic ungulates is available but relatively little is known about thermoregulation in wild ungulate species. Moreover, in the past, thermoregulation studies were conducted mainly in climatic chambers and consequently the effects of certain important environmental parameters were ignored. The pelages of mammals provide a barrier between the animal and its environment, and the physical characteristics of the pelage can feature prominently in the thermal adaptations of animals to specific climatic zones. Scholander et at. (1950), for example, have demonstrated the value of a thick pelage in arctic mammals. The thick pelage provides good protection against heat loss and thus extends the ambient temperature limits which the animal can tolerate without the need to increase metabolic heat production. Schmidt-Nielsen (1959) has shown that a thick pelage can also be advantageous to an animal in a desert environment. The thick, dorsal fur in the camel provides protection against excessive heat gain from the environment and thereby assists with water conservation. The colour of a mammal's pelage is also involved in the thermal adaptations to specific environmental conditions. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/12524 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:33:48.261Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publishDateRange | 2015 |
| publishDateSort | 2015 |
| publisher | Department of Biological Sciences |
| publisherStr | Department of Biological Sciences |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/12524 Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina Louw, G N Zoology The ungulates include some of the largest land animals and, in consequence, they cannot avoid climatic stress as do small mammals. A great deal of information concerning the physiology of thermoregulation in domestic ungulates is available but relatively little is known about thermoregulation in wild ungulate species. Moreover, in the past, thermoregulation studies were conducted mainly in climatic chambers and consequently the effects of certain important environmental parameters were ignored. The pelages of mammals provide a barrier between the animal and its environment, and the physical characteristics of the pelage can feature prominently in the thermal adaptations of animals to specific climatic zones. Scholander et at. (1950), for example, have demonstrated the value of a thick pelage in arctic mammals. The thick pelage provides good protection against heat loss and thus extends the ambient temperature limits which the animal can tolerate without the need to increase metabolic heat production. Schmidt-Nielsen (1959) has shown that a thick pelage can also be advantageous to an animal in a desert environment. The thick, dorsal fur in the camel provides protection against excessive heat gain from the environment and thereby assists with water conservation. The colour of a mammal's pelage is also involved in the thermal adaptations to specific environmental conditions. 2015-02-17T13:06:30Z 2015-02-17T13:06:30Z 1981 Doctoral Thesis Doctoral PhD http://hdl.handle.net/11427/12524 eng application/pdf Department of Biological Sciences Faculty of Science University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Zoology Hofmeyr, Margaretha Delina Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| thesis_degree_str | Doctoral |
| title | Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| title_full | Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| title_fullStr | Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| title_full_unstemmed | Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| title_short | Thermal physiology of selected African ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| title_sort | thermal physiology of selected african ungulates with emphasis on the physical properties of the pelage |
| topic | Zoology |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/12524 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hofmeyrmargarethadelina thermalphysiologyofselectedafricanungulateswithemphasisonthephysicalpropertiesofthepelage |