PhysOrg Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 The evolution of endothermy (thermoregulation by metabolic means) represents a major transition in vertebrate history. However, the process of endothermy evolution and its timeline in birds and mammals remains controversial. In a new report on Science Advances, Enrico L. Rezende and a team of researchers at the Center of Applied Ecology and Sustainability, and the Institute of Environmental and Evolutionary Sciences in Chile, combined a heat transfer model with theropod body size data. The researchers then reconstructed the evolution of metabolic rates along the bird stem lineage. The results suggested that a reduction in size constituted the path of least resistance for endothermy to evolve—maximizing thermal niche expansion, while reducing costs of elevated energy requirements. View the full article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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