Cycling temperature treatments and digestion in prairie lizards (Sceloporus consobrinus)

In nature, many organisms experience a daily range of body temperatures. Thermal performance at stable temperatures is often extrapolated to predict function in cyclical environments. However, temperature order and cyclicity may influence physiological processes. The current study compared energy intake, digestive passage time, and energy budgets across stable temperature (30˚C, 33˚C, 36˚C) and two temperature cycles in lizards (Sceloporus conosbrinus), determining 1) if stable treatments adequately project performance in a cycling environment and 2) if temperature order influences performance. Cycles rotated through 30˚C, 33˚C, 36˚C daily, with equal durations of time at each temperature but differing temperature order, with warm days and cool nights in cycle 1 and cool days and warm nights in cycle 2. For analyses, stable treatments were compiled into a single dataset and compared to cycles. If temperature is the primary factor regulating performance, then performance averages from st..., Field Collection
            Male and female adult S. consobrinus were collected in northwest Arkansas from 2020 – 2022, ranging in size from 48 – 70mm snout-vent length (n = 39).  All necessary permits were acquired for the research conducted (IACUC #19080, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Permit #050120211).
Temperature Treatments
Lizards were randomly assigned to one of three temperature treatments, stable 33°C (n = 12), cycle 1 (n = 12), or cycle 2 (n = 15), with males and females as evenly divided as possible. The first cycling temperature treatment (referred to as cycle 1) consisted of a nighttime temperature of 30°C and a daytime temperature of 36°C, with a sunrise and sunset temperature of 33°C during the transition between the low and high temperatures. To compare performance under different orders of temperature cycles the second cycling temperature treatment (referred to as cycle 2) consisted of a nighttime temperature of 36°C and a daytime temperature of 30°C, with a sunris..., , # Cycling Temperature Treatments and Digestion in Prairie Lizards (Sceloporus consobrinus)

The dataset contains all information used in the analysis. Physiological data were collected at 33C stable temperature, and under two cycling temperature treatments. We looked at food consumption rate using voluntary consumption with crickets, in first grams which was converted to kilojoules. We also quantified digestive passage time in hours, the time from consuming food to excreting it. We quantified energy excreted in grams which was converted to kilojoules, for both urates and feces. Lastly, we calculated metabolizable energy intake and assimilated energy considering food consumed (kJ) and excreted (kJ).

## Description of the data and file structure

The columns are titled according to the data contained:

* Lizard - This column is a unique ID indicating which lizard was used. These are specific to our lab, but indicate each lizard was unique.
* Temperature - Temperature refers to the ...