Abstract
Studies of the relationship between brain size and body size in terrestrial verteberates have a long history1–4. Demonstrations of regular relationships between brain and body size across species within selected vertebrate groups serve two purposes: (1) in comparison of species of different body size, empirically recognized ‘scaling effects’ can be taken into account; (2) empirical relationships may suggest useful working hypotheses regarding functional constraints (although they cannot directly reveal casual connections). It is widely accepted5,6 that brain size is scaled to keep pace with changes in body surface area (rather than volume), and this provides the basis for many interpretations of relative brain size. Re-examination of brain–body size relationships for large samples of species from three major vertebrate groups (mammals, birds, reptiles) now shows that there is no empirical foundation for the concept of scaling to body surface area. Instead, it seems that brain size may be linked to maternal metabolic turnover. This has implications not only for assessment of relative brain size in particular species, but also for pursuing links between brain size and ‘life strategies’.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Prices vary by article type
from$1.95
to$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Snell, O. Arch. Psychiatr. Nervkrankh. 23, 436–446 (1891).
Dubois, E. Bull. Soc. Anthrop. Paris 8, 337–376 (1897).
Lapicque, L. C. r. Séanc. Soc. Biol. 5, 10 (1898).
Brandt, A. Bull. Soc. imp. nat. Moscow 40, 525–543 (1867).
Jerison, H. J. Evolution of the Brain and Intelligence (Academic, New York, 1973).
Bauchot, R. Brain Behav. Evol. 15, 1–18 (1978).
Huxley, J. S. Problems of Relative Growth (Methuen, London, 1932).
Gould, S. J. Biol. Rev. 41, 587–640 (1966).
Martin, R. D. Z. Morph. Anthrop. 71, 115–124 (1980).
Rubner, M. Z. Biol. 19, 535–562 (1883).
Kleiber, M. The Fire of Life: An Introduction to Animal Energetics (Wiley, New York, 1961).
Harvey, P. H. & Mace, G. M. in Current Problems in Sociobiology (Cambridge University Press, in the press).
Hemmingsen, A. M. Rep. Steno Meml Hosp. 4, 7–58 (1950).
Hemmingsen, A. M. Rep. Steno Meml Hosp. 9, 1–110 (1960).
Lasiewski, R. C. & Dawson, W. R. Condor 69, 13–23 (1967).
Dawson, T. J. & Hulbert, A. J. Am. J. Physiol. 218, 1233–1238 (1970).
Liu, C. T. & Higbee, G. A. J. appl. Physiol. 40, 101–104 (1976).
Spector, W. S. Handbook of Biological Data (Saunders, Philadelphia, 1956).
Adams, T. in Comparative Physiology of Thermoregulation Vol. 2 (ed. Whittow, G. C.) 151–189 (Academic, New York, 1971).
Jarman, P. J. J. Zool. Lond. 166, 349–356 (1972).
Ghubrial, L. I. Physiol. Zool. 43, 249–256 (1970).
Brody, S. Bioenergetics and Growth (Rheinhold, New York, 1945).
Bauchot, R. & Stephen, H. Mammalia 30, 160–196 (1966); 33, 225–275 (1969).
Crile, G. W. & Quiring, D. P. Ohio J. Sci. 40, 219–259 (1940).
von Bonin, G. J. gen. Physiol. 16, 379–389 (1937).
Count, E. W. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 46, 993–1122 (1947).
Stephen, H., Bauchot, R. & Andy, O. J. in The Primate Brain (eds Nobak, C. R. & Montagna, W.) 289–297 (Appleton, New York, 1970).
Eisenberg, J. F. & Wilson, D. E. Evolution 32, 740–751 (1978).
Crile, G. W. & Quiring, D. P. Ohio J. Sci. 40, 219–259 (1940).
Portmann, A. Alauda 14, 2–20 (1946); 15, 1–15 (1947).
Platel, R. in Biology of the Reptilia Vol. 9 (ed. Gans, C.) 147–171 (Academic, London, 1979).
Portmann, A. Biomorphology 1, 109–126 (1939); Rev. suisse zool. 72, 658–666 (1965).
Wirz, K. Acta anat. 63, 449–508 (1966).
Martin, R. D. in Phylogeny of the Primates (eds Luckett, W. P. & Szalay, F. S.) 265–297 (Plenum, New York, 1975).
Sacher, G. A. & Staffeldt, E. F. Am. Nat. 108, 593–616 (1974).
Rudder, B. C. C. thesis, Univ. London (1979).
Heinroth, O. in Tabulae Biologicae Vol. 5 (eds Oppenheimer, C. & Pincussen, L.) 716–741 (Junk, Berlin, 1930).
Rahn, H., Paganelli, C. V. & Ar, A. Resp. Physiol. 22, 297–309 (1974).
Gould, S. J. Contr. Primatol. 5, 244–292 (1975).
Sacher, G. A. in CIBA Fdn Colloq. Ageing Vol. 5 (eds Wolstenholme, G. E. W. & O'Connor, M.) 115–133 (Churchill, London, 1959).
Müller, F. Verh. naturf. Ges. Basel 80, 1–31 (1969).
Western, D. Afr. J. Ecol. 17, 185–204 (1979).
Payne, P. R. & Wheeler, E. F. Nature 215, 849–850, 1134–1136 (1967); Proc. Nutr. Soc. 27, 129–138 (1968).
Leutenegger, W. Folia primatol. 20, 280–293 (1973).
Robbins, C. T. & Robbins, B. L. Am. Nat. 114, 101–116 (1979).
Clutton-Brock, T. H. & Harvey, P. H. J. Zool. Lond. 190, 309–323 (1980).
Bakker, R. T. Evolution 27, 636–658 (1971); Nature 238, 81–85 (1972).
Hopson, J. A. A. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 8, 429–448 (1977); in Biology of the Reptilia Vol. 9 (ed. Gans, C.) 39–146 (Academic, London, 1979).
Bennett, A. F. & Dalzell, B. Evolution 27, 170–174 (1973).
Colbert, E. H. Am. Mus. Novit. 2076, 1–16 (1962).
Hopson, J. A. in A Cold Look at the Warm-blooded Dinosaurs (eds Thomas, R. D. K. & Olson, E. C.) 287–310 (AAAS, Washington, 1980).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Martin, R. Relative brain size and basal metabolic rate in terrestrial vertebrates. Nature 293, 57–60 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/293057a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/293057a0
This article is cited by
-
Detecting natural selection in trait-trait coevolution
BMC Ecology and Evolution (2023)
-
The impact of environmental factors on the evolution of brain size in carnivorans
Communications Biology (2022)
-
The energy allocation trade-offs underlying life history traits in hypometabolic strepsirhines and other primates
Scientific Reports (2021)
-
Ectothermy and cardiac shunts profoundly slow the equilibration of inhaled anaesthetics in a multi-compartment model
Scientific Reports (2020)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.