Impacts of human-induced stress on brood patch temperature in a wild, incubating bird

Stress elevates body core temperature, a response termed ‘stress-induced
hyperthermia’ (SIH). In laboratory studies, body surface cooling is simultaneously observed: vasoconstriction in the periphery shunts blood and hence warmth to the core. A selective benefit of SIH is thus the facilitation of metabolism to support fight-or-flight. Less is known about its costs when placed within the context of longer term body temperature regulation under thermoregulatory and
resource challenges that are absent in the laboratory. Field data on these costs is important for understanding the impacts of human-induced stress on wild ecosystems. This study will explore whether stress alters brood patch surface temperature. SIH in this region would pose interesting life history questions on the trade-off between vasoconstriction for self-preservation versus
vasodilation to warm the eggs. For the offspring, costs of low incubation temperature include altered growth rate and stress responsiveness. For conservation therefore, recurrent or long term stress-induced brood patch temperature changes could have not only individual costs but cross-generational impacts.