Thermoregulatory behaviour limits local adaptation of thermal niches and confers sensitivity to climate change

• Published in: Functional ecology Vol. 29; no. 8; pp. 1038 - 1047
• Main Authors: Buckley, Lauren B., Ehrenberger, Joseph C., Angilletta, Michael J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Wiley 01.08.2015; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Adaptation; Animal physiological ecology; body temperature; Climate; Climate change; Cold tolerance; critical thermal limits; Empirical analysis; Environmental changes; Fatigue limit; global warming; Heat stress; Heat tolerance; Lizards; niche conservatism; Niches; Physiology; population; prediction; Sceloporus; Sceloporus undulatus; Temperature tolerance; Thermal stress; Thermoregulation; Thermoregulatory behavior

Summary Thermoregulation buffers environmental variation, which enables a species to persist during climate change but ultimately hinders adaptation of thermal tolerance by weakening selective pressure. We used a model of optimal thermal physiology to demonstrate how thermoregulatory behaviour limit...