Characteristics of the environment and of body temperatures of eight free-ranging springbok
| . | Aug—Oct `Spring' . | Nov—Jan `Summer' . | Feb—Apr `Autumn' . | May—Jul `Winter' . |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Environment | ||||
| Air temperature (°C) | 15.8±3.7 | 20.2±2.2 | 17.6±2.8 | 10.0±2.1 |
| Globe temperature (°C) | 17.2±4.2 | 24.0±2.4 | 20.9±2.5 | no data |
| Wind speed (m s-1) | 3.6±0.9 | 3.2±0.6 | 2.6±0.6 | 2.4±0.7 |
| Rainfall (mm) | 9±15 | 97±52 | 88±21 | 34±19 |
| Time of sunrise (h) | 06:11 | 05:24 | 06:15 | 06:55 |
| Time of sunset (h) | 18:08 | 18:58 | 18:29 | 17:36 |
| Photoperiod (h) | 11:57 | 13:34 | 12:14 | 10:41 |
| Body temperature (°C) | ||||
| Mean | 39.43±0.15 | 39.50±0.12 | 39.39±0.14 | 39.22±0.07 |
| Minimum | 38.85±0.21 | 38.97±0.12 | 38.87±0.11 | 38.61±0.10 |
| Maximum | 40.02±0.20 | 40.10±0.15 | 39.97±0.21 | 39.85±0.18 |
| Amplitude | 1.17±0.25 | 1.13±0.14 | 1.11±0.18 | 1.24±0.21 |
| Time of minimum (h) | 06:44±0:31 | 06:12±0:39 | 06:40±0:52 | 07:26±0:32 |
| Time of maximum (h) | 18:41±1:02 | 17:53±0:55 | 18:08±0:40 | 19:04±0:39 |
| . | Aug—Oct `Spring' . | Nov—Jan `Summer' . | Feb—Apr `Autumn' . | May—Jul `Winter' . |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Environment | ||||
| Air temperature (°C) | 15.8±3.7 | 20.2±2.2 | 17.6±2.8 | 10.0±2.1 |
| Globe temperature (°C) | 17.2±4.2 | 24.0±2.4 | 20.9±2.5 | no data |
| Wind speed (m s-1) | 3.6±0.9 | 3.2±0.6 | 2.6±0.6 | 2.4±0.7 |
| Rainfall (mm) | 9±15 | 97±52 | 88±21 | 34±19 |
| Time of sunrise (h) | 06:11 | 05:24 | 06:15 | 06:55 |
| Time of sunset (h) | 18:08 | 18:58 | 18:29 | 17:36 |
| Photoperiod (h) | 11:57 | 13:34 | 12:14 | 10:41 |
| Body temperature (°C) | ||||
| Mean | 39.43±0.15 | 39.50±0.12 | 39.39±0.14 | 39.22±0.07 |
| Minimum | 38.85±0.21 | 38.97±0.12 | 38.87±0.11 | 38.61±0.10 |
| Maximum | 40.02±0.20 | 40.10±0.15 | 39.97±0.21 | 39.85±0.18 |
| Amplitude | 1.17±0.25 | 1.13±0.14 | 1.11±0.18 | 1.24±0.21 |
| Time of minimum (h) | 06:44±0:31 | 06:12±0:39 | 06:40±0:52 | 07:26±0:32 |
| Time of maximum (h) | 18:41±1:02 | 17:53±0:55 | 18:08±0:40 | 19:04±0:39 |
For air temperature, globe temperature and wind speed, values are means± S.D. of 24 h averages. Rainfall is mean ± S.D. of monthly averages; time of sunrise, sunset and photoperiod are means of monthly averages. Body temperature indices were determined for each day, and then averaged over about 90 days for each animal; thereafter mean ± S.D. was calculated for the eight animals.