Temperature and Size: Examining the Relationship in Endothermic Species

Abstract

Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries. When it comes to extreme climates Bergmann’s law shows that animals that live in cooler temperatures are larger because they have a smaller surface area to volume ratio. Why does size vary in different temperatures? We are answering this question to provide further evidence that shows whether or not a correlation between surface area to volume ratio and temperature exists. This experiment presents a correlation between temperature and surface area to volume ratio. To approach this, we ran an experiment to test the relationship of different sizes in cold temperatures. Our results found that larger bodies in general retained more heat, and took longer to cool down. This data will help provide other people trying to answer this same question with new evidence.