Meeting Abstract
Temperature is a fundamental variable that affects performance of many biological systems. Muscle-powered movement is especially thermally sensitive in ectothermic tetrapods, therefore, swimming performance of salamanders is expected to be significantly affected by temperature changes. However, previous studies have shown that some salamanders show surprisingly low thermal dependence of swimming velocity. To investigate the generality of these findings, we imaged swimming in Ambystoma maculatum, Desmognathus ocoee, Desmognathus quadramaculatus, and Eurycea wilderae. Swimming performance was tested in a temperature-controlled bath at 7 and 17°C. Swimming velocity decreased as temperature decreased, but thermal sensitivity of swimming velocity was lower than that of limbed locomotion in ectothermic tetrapods that have been examined, confirming earlier studies. Investigating the energetics, fluid flow and motor control of swimming would yield insight into the curiously low temperature sensitivity of swimming in salamanders.
