Food intake and oxygen consumption pigeons at low temperatures.

Summary. The daily food intake has been measured in five pigeons while they were kept for 2-4 weeks at -10° C, +18° C, and -24° C. At the end of each period the oxygen consumption was measured at various temperatures between -35° C and +20C. It was found that the food intake was closely correlated with the oxygen consumption, both of them indicating nearly the same critical temperature. Below this temperature both oxygen consumption and food intake increased linearly with the body-to-air gradient.