Feb 4, 2021
Researchers Andreas Fahlman and Alicia Borque Espinosa return to discuss their latest respiratory physiology paper focusing on walrus. Relying on animals living and trained in managed care, the researchers were able to develop the necessary equipment to measure basic respirometry parameters for these semi-aquatic animals. As with all metabolic studies, it was important to work with calm animals desensitized to the presence of non-invasive equipment. Animals trained via operant conditioning to voluntarily participate in data collection by breathing into a mask helps avoid the confounding effects on respiration and metabolism of anxious or restrained subjects.
That Sounds Wild: Cheetah purr. Frank Buck Zoo.