Mechanisms of Insect Thermoregulation

Abstract

In insects, as in other animals, the rates of most physiological processes and associated functions are related to body temperature. For the most part insects can be considered as ectotherms. The production of heat by endothermy and the elevation of body temperature have been known for a long time (see Newport, 1837; Bachmetjew, 1899; Dotterweich, 1928; Himmer, 1932; Oosthuizen, 1939; Krogh and Zeuthen, 1941; and others). More recent evidence suggests that flight activity in adults, as well as rate of growth of the immatures in social insects, are sometimes dependent on elaborate mechanisms of temperature regulation. The purpose of this essay is to point out some of the mechanisms whereby individual insects regulate their body temperature.