干旱区生态环境知识资源中心

In the present study, we measured resting metabolic rates of two murid rodent species from extremely different habitats. The aim was to assess, under controlled laboratory conditions, the relations between resting metabolic rate, average daily metabolic rate, food consumption, and water turnover rate, The results obtained reveal considerable differences in each of the physiological parameters between the two species. However, the ratios of resting metabolic rate and the average daily metabolic rate are not different in the two species. The results of the present study indicate that the characteristic low resting metabolic rate of desert mammals also implies a low rate of the average daily metabolic rate, food requirements, and water turnover rate.