Meeting Abstract
Glucose mobilization is a classically listed and presumably adaptive physiological response to acute stress. However, this hyperglycemic response is not ubiquitous, particularly among non-mammalian vertebrates. Here we characterized the glycemic response to acute-handling stress in an overwintering, free-living, population of birds: white-throated sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) in St. Mary’s County, Maryland. As part of this experiment we validated a novel technique for rapid field measurements of glucose: utilization of a human blood glucose meter, FreeStyle Lite®. Measurements with the meter were strongly correlated to those acquired using a colorimetric assay kit. Furthermore, acute-handling stress elevated blood glucose at both 15 and 30 min post-capture as compared to baseline. This result is consistent with both the mammalian literature as well as our previous work on white-crowned sparrows during the breeding season. Finally, body condition, particularly abdominal fat score, was significantly positively correlated to stress-induced blood glucose after 30 min of handling stress. This result suggests that fat stores are predictive of glucose mobilization capacity in pre-migratory white-throated sparrows.
