Scaling of heart rate with breathing frequency and body mass in cetaceans

Abstract

Plasticity in the cardiac function of a marine mammal facilitates rapid adjustments to the contrasting metabolic demands of breathing at the surface and diving during an extended apnea. By matching their heart rate ( f H ) to their immediate physiological needs, a marine mammal can improve its metabolic efficiency and maximize the proportion of time spent underwater. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) is a known modulation of f H that is driven by respiration and has been suggested to increase cardiorespiratory efficiency. To investigate the presence of RSA in cetaceans and the relationship between f H , breathing rate ( f R ) and body mass ( M b ), we measured simultaneous f H and f R in five cetacean species in human care. We found that a higher f R was associated with a higher mean instantaneous f H (i f H ) and minimum i f H of the RSA. By contrast, f H scaled inversely with M b such that larger animals had lower mean and minimum i f H s of the RSA. There was a significant allometric relationship between maximum i f H of the RSA and M b , but not f R , which may indicate that this parameter is set by physical laws and not adjusted dynamically with physiological needs. RSA was significantly affected by f R and was greatly reduced with small increases in f R . Ultimately, these data show that surface f H s of cetaceans are complex and the f H patterns we observed are controlled by several factors. We suggest the importance of considering RSA when interpreting f H measurements and particularly how f R may drive f H changes that are important for efficient gas exchange. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Measuring physiology in free-living animals (Part I)’.