Universality and conservation of relationships among thermal traits

Determine whether the thermal traits defined by temperature-response curves—minimum temperature T_min, maximum temperature T_max, thermal range T_ran = T_max − T_min, optimum temperature T_opt, left range T_lran = T_opt − T_min, and right range T_rran = T_max − T_opt—are universally interrelated across species and whether such relationships are conserved across different biological response variables (e.g., population growth rate, metabolic rate), as suggested by analytic relationships derivable from the general temperature-dependence equation Y(T) ≈ Y_0 (1/T)^{−(ΔC/R) − α} exp[−(ΔH/R)(1/T)].

Background

The paper derives analytic expressions for thermal traits from a general temperature-dependence equation grounded in transition state theory. By combining these expressions (e.g., those for T_min and T_max), the authors suggest predictable relationships among traits such as T_min, T_max, T_opt, and range measures.

Although some trait interrelationships have been reported for particular variables (e.g., population growth rate), the authors explicitly note uncertainty about whether all thermal traits are interrelated and whether such relationships are conserved across different biological quantities.