Summary
Continuous water flow and static test apparatus were used in evaluating the influence of acclimation temperature, size, sex, season, life stage, current velocity, and testing method upon the upper-lethal temperature of the nymphal stage of the stonefly, Paragnetina media Walker.
Lethal temperature was raised by acclimation to higher temperatures throughout the thermal range examined. The rate of gain of heat resistance was approximately 5°C per day. Acclimation to colder temperatures was much slower.
Body size had no significant effect on upper-lethal temperature in summer or autumn, whereas in winter and spring larger nymphs were significantly less tolerant than smaller nymphs. This difference was attributed to sex, not body size per se.
Tolerance was significantly less in static waters than in flowing water, faster current significantly increasing heat resistance at all lethal temperatures examined.
Upper-lethal temperatures showed seasonal differences independent of acclimation, with nymphs least tolerant in spring, when temperature resistance was influenced by sex, molting condition, and proximity of emergence. The most temperature-sensitive stage was the period immediately following egg hatching.
The direct effect of upper-lethal temperature is apparently not a limiting factor for P. media in the environment in which it is found. Temperature increases do, however, effect final stages of nymphal development, emergence patterns, and survival after hatching.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Brett, J. R. - 1944 - Some lethal temperature relations of Algonquin Park fishes. Univ. Toronto Stud., Biol. Ser. 52; Publ. Ont. Fish. Res. Lab. 63: 1–49.
Brett, J. R. - 1946 - Rate of gain of heat tolerance in goldfish (Carassius auratus). Univ. Tor. Stud., Biol. Ser. 53; Publ. Ont. Fish. Res. Lab. 64: 9–28.
Brett, J. R. - 1956 - Some principles in the thermal requirements of fishes. Quant. Rev. Biol., 31: 75–87.
Bullock, T. H. - 1955 - Compensation for temperature in the metabolism and activity of poikilotherms. Biol. Rev. 30 (3): 311–342.
Dickie, L. M. - 1958 - Effects of high temperature on survival of the giant scallop. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Canada. 15 (6): 1189–1211.
Doudroff, P. - 1942 - The resistance and acclimatization of marine fishes to temperature changes. 2. Experiments with Girella nigricans (Ayres). Biol. Bull. 83: 219–244.
Gibson, M. B. - 1954 - Upper lethal temperature relations of the guppy, Lebistes reticulatus. Can. J. Zool. 32: 393–407.
Litchfield, J. T., Jr. - 1949 - A method for rapid graphic solution of time-percent curves. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Therap. 97: 399–408.
Prosser, C. L. & Brown, A. F., Jr. - 1961 - Comparative Animal Physiology. 2nd ed. W. B. Saunders, Philadelphia. 688 p.
Spoor, W. A. - 1955 - Loss and gain of heat tolerance by the crayfish. Biol. Bull. 108 (1): 77–87.
Sprague, J. B. - 1963 - Resistance of four freshwater crustaceans to lethal high temperature and low oxygen. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Canada 20 (2): 387–415.
Tyler, A. V. - 1966 - Some lethal temperature relations of two minnows of the genus chrosomus. Can. J. Zool. 44: 349–364.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Contribution No. 213, W. K. Kellogg Biological Station of Michigan State University. This investigation was supported in part by Research Grant WP 01178 from the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Heiman, D.R., Knight, A.W. Upper-lethal-temperature relations of the nymphs of the stonefly, paragnetina media. Hydrobiologia 39, 479–493 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00046741
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00046741