[Effect of cold on catecholamine concentration in the great pectoral muscle of sparrows]

Birds (Passer montanus, P. domesticus, Fringilla coelebs) kept in open-air cages in Leningrad during winter, do not differ in total catecholamine content from avian species (P. domesticus, Serinus canaria) which were kept under laboratory conditions at 15--20 degrees. In the sparrow P. montanus, no significaut seasonal changes were observed in catecholamine content; however repetitive cooling up to--10 degrees only at night increased twice the content of catecholamines (especially, noradrenalin) in the pectoral muscle.