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Updated: May 27, 2026

Field-Based Thermal Physiology Assay: Cold Shock Recovery under Ambient Conditions
Published on: March 9, 2021
A general model for effects of temperature on ectotherm ontogenetic growth and development
Wenyun Zuo1, Melanie E Moses, Geoffrey B West
1Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA. wyzuo@unm.edu
Abstract:
The temperature size rule (TSR) is the tendency for ectotherms to develop faster but mature at smaller body sizes at higher temperatures. It can be explained by a simple model in which the rate of growth or biomass accumulation and the rate of development have different temperature dependence. The model accounts for both TSR and the less frequently observed reverse-TSR, predicts the fraction of energy allocated to maintenance and synthesis over the course of development, and also predicts that less total energy is expended when developing at warmer temperatures for TSR and vice versa for reverse-TSR. It has important implications for effects of climate change on ectothermic animals.
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