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Evidence against universal metabolic allometry
Article first published online: 2 APR 2004
DOI: 10.1111/j.0269-8463.2004.00817.x
Additional Information
How to Cite
Bokma, F. (2004), Evidence against universal metabolic allometry. Functional Ecology, 18: 184–187. doi: 10.1111/j.0269-8463.2004.00817.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 2 APR 2004
- Article first published online: 2 APR 2004
- Received 18 June 2003; revised 29 September 2003; accepted 9 October 2003
- Abstract
- Article
- References
- Cited By
Keywords:
- Body size;
- metabolic rate;
- scaling
Summary
- 1A long-standing theoretical problem in biology is the relation between organism size M and metabolic rate Q.
- 2This long history of research into such a basic pattern is due to the particular shape of the relationship: it is generally observed that the relation is well described as Q ∝ Mb where b is most often between 0·5 and 1.
- 3Numerous analyses have focused on determining b using interspecific data, in particular to test whether b = 2/3 or b = 3/4.
- 4Here a large amount of intraspecific data on fish are analysed, which show that b ≠2/3, b ≠ 3/4, and especially that there is no single, universal value of b.