​

2025

​

Liddle, N., Freeman, M.T., Cunningham, S.J., Conradie, S.R., McKechnie, A.E. 2025. A heat-sensitive songbird’s risk of lethal hyperthermia increases with humidity. Biology Letters. 21:20250284. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2025.0284.

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Risi, M.M., Jones, C.W., Conna, M., Gill, V., Stephen, V., Cunningham, S.J., Ryan, P.G.  2025. Escalating threats: house mouse attacks on adult wandering albatrosses spread across Marion Island. Biological Invasions. 27:149. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-025-03610-8.

 

Nhlapo, K.B., Cunningham, S.J., Sumasgutner, P., Ganswindt, A., McKechnie, A.E., Ngcamphalala, C.A. 2025. High human presence is correlated with reduced faecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels in an urban bird population. Hormones and Behavior. 170: 105724.

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Coulson, B., Freeman, M.T., Conradie, S.R., McKechnie,A.E. 2025. Increases in humidity will intensify lethal hyperthermia risk for birds occupying humid lowlands, Conservation Physiology, 13, Issue 1, 2025, coaf036, https://doi.org/10.1093/conphys/coaf036

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2024

​

Conradie, S.R., Wolf, B.O., Cunningham, S.J., Bourne, A.R., van de Ven, T.M.F.N, Ridley, A.R., McKechnie, A.E. 2024. Integrating fine-scale behaviour and microclimate data into biophysical models highlights the risk of lethal hyperthermia and dehydration. Ecography. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.07432.

 

Cunningham, S.J. 2024. Climate change. In: Behavioural Responses to a Changing World. Edited by: B. M. Wong and U. Candolin, Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192858979 [Peer-reviewed book chapter]

 

Diez-Méndez, D., Cunningham, S.J. 2024. Open-cup nesters in the Kalahari: incubation and egg-shading behaviour in passerines cannot be detected with temperature dataloggers during hot periods. Journal of Arid Environments. 222: 105159.

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Hana N Merchant, Daniel W Hart, Nigel C Bennett, Andries K Janse van Vuuren, Marc T Freeman, Andrew E McKechnie, Chris G Faulkes, Nathan D Mordaunt, Steven J Portugal. 2024. Evolutionary shifts in the thermal biology of a subterranean mammal: the effect of habitat aridity. Journal of Experimental Biology. 227: jeb247048. doi: https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.247048

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Strydom, L.H., Conradie, S.R., Smit, I.P. et al. 2024. Mapping tree canopy thermal refugia for birds using biophysical models and LiDAR. International Journal of Biometeorology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-024-02833-z

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Bianca Coulson, Marc T. Freeman, Juanita Wessels, Andrew E. McKechnie. 2024. Non-evaporative heat dissipation across the beaks and casques of large forest hornbills. Journal of Thermal Biology. 125: 103993. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2024.103993.

​

OJB Chalwin-Milton, MT Freeman, AE McKechnie. 2024. Heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity in an arid-zone elephant shrew. Mammalian Biology 104 (5), 549-557.

​

NC Wu, L Alton, RP Bovo, N Carey, SE Currie, JRB Lighton, et al. 2024. Reporting guidelines for terrestrial respirometry: Building openness, transparency of metabolic rate and evaporative water loss data. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology. 296:111688

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AE McKechnie, MT Freeman, R Kemp, K Wolter, V Naidoo. 2024. Effects of lead on avian thermoregulation in the heat: An experimental test with pied crows (Corvus albus). Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 110, 104519.

​

JJ Voges, MT Freeman, BO Wolf, AE McKechnie. 2024. Functional role of metabolic suppression in avian thermoregulation in the heat. Journal of Thermal Biology 123, 103924.

​

R Kemp, R Colyn, MT Freeman, AE McKechnie. 2024. Population status of the range-restricted Red Lark Calendulauda burra in a conservation area stronghold. Ostrich 95 (2), 140-151.

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MT Freeman, B Coulson, JC Short, CA Ngcamphalala, MO Makola, et al. 2024. Evolution of avian heat tolerance: the role of atmospheric humidity. Ecology 105 (5), e4279.

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L Van den Heever, V Naidoo, T Coetzer, L Eyssen, J Hewlett. et al. 2024. Sub-lethal impacts of lead poisoning on blood biochemistry, immune function and delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (δ-ALAD) activity in Cape (Gyps coprotheres) and white-backed (G. africanus) Vulture chicks. Environmental Research 245, 117926.

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2023

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Payne, S., Cunningham, S.J., Howes, C.G., McKechnie, A.E. 2023. A trait-based assessment of southern African arid-zone birds’ vulnerability to climate change. Biological Conservation. 287: 110338.

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Conradie, S.R., Kearney, M.R., Wolf, B.O, Cunningham, S.J., Freeman, M.T., Kemp, R., McKechnie, A.E. 2023. An evaluation of a biophysical model for predicting avian thermoregulation in the heat. Journal of Experimental Biology. 226, jeb245066. doi:10.1242/jeb.245066.

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Orolowitz, M., Shadwell, E., Cunningham, S.J. 2023. Drinking dependency shapes behavioural thermoregulatory trade-offs in four arid-zone larks. Journal of Arid Environments. 214, 105001. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2023.105001

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Hunt, K., Marais, L., Cunningham, S.J., Ridley, A., Moagi, L., Rose, S., McKechnie, A., Bourne, A.R. 2023. Camelthorn and blackthorn trees provide important resources for Southern Pied Babblers Turdoides bicolor in the Kalahari. Ibis. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.13232

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Mikula, P., Tomášek, O., Romportl, D., Aikins, T., Avendaño, J., Braimoh-Azaki, B., Chaskda, A., Cresswell, W., Cunningham, S.J., Dale, S., Favoretto, G., Floyd, K., Glover, H., Grim, T., Henry, D., Holmern, T., Hromada, M., Iwajomo, S., Lilleyman, A., Magige, F., Martin, R., Maximiano, M., Nana, E., Ncube, E., Ndaimani, H., Nelson, E., van Niekerk, J., Pienaar, C., Piratelli, A., Pistorius, P., Radkovic, A., Reynolds, C., Roskaft, E., Shanungu, G., Siqueira, P., Tarakini, T., Tejeiro-Mahecha, N., Thompson, M., Wamiti, W., Wilson, M., Tye, D., Tye, N., Vehtari, A., Tryjanowski, P., Weston, M., Blumstein, D., Albrecht, T. 2023. Bird tolerance to humans in open tropical ecosystems. Nature Communications. 14, 2146. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-37936-5

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Bourne, A.R., Ridley, A.R., Cunningham, S.J. 2023. Helpers don’t help when it’s hot in a cooperatively breeding bird, the Southern Pied Babbler. Behavioral Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arad023

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Sumasgutner, P.*, Cunningham, S.J.*, Hegemann, A., Amar, A., Watson, H., Nilsson, J., Andersson, M.N., Isaksson, C. 2023. Interactive effects of rising temperatures and urbanisation on birds across different climate zones: a mechanistic perspective. Global Change Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16645. *joint first authors

 

Azaki, B.D.A., Cunningham, S.J., Cresswell, W. 2023. Incubation scheduling by African Black Oystercatchers: effects of weather, tide phase, and time of day. Journal of Ornithology, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-022-02023-x.

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AE McKechnie, MT Freeman, RM Brigham. 2023. Avian heterothermy: a review of patterns and processes. Integrative and Comparative Biology 63 (5), 1028-1038.

​

A Pessato, E Udino, AE McKechnie, ATD Bennett, MM Mariette. 2023. Thermal acclimatisation to heatwave conditions is rapid but sex-specific in wild zebra finches. Scientific Reports 13 (1), 18297.

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DL Swanson, M Stager, F Vézina, JS Liu, AE McKechnie, RG Amirkhiz. 2023. Evidence for a maintenance cost for birds maintaining highly flexible basal, but not summit, metabolic rates. Scientific Reports 13 (1), 8968.

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A McKechnie, M Freeman, M Makola, M Noakes, M Brigham. 2023. Evolution of avian heterothermy: why no deep torpor in songbirds? Integrative and Comparative Biology. 63. S302-S303.

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L Van den Heever, MA Elburg, L Iaccheri, V Naidoo, H Ueckermann, et al. 2023. Identifying the origin of lead poisoning in white-backed vulture (Gyps africanus) chicks at an important South African breeding colony: a stable lead isotope approach. Environmental Science and Pollution Research 30 (6), 15059-15069. 

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L Ma, SR Conradie, CL Crawford, AS Gardner, MR Kearney, et al. 2023. Global patterns of climate change impacts on desert bird communities. Nature Communications 14 (1), 211.

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CA Ngcamphalala, SW Nicolson, A Ganswindt, AE McKechnie. 2023. Physiological validation of the use of faecal glucocorticoid metabolites as a measure of stress in a passerine and a columbid from southern Africa. Emu-Austral Ornithology 123 (1), 79-84

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2022

​

Jain, V., Bugnyar, T., Cunningham, S.J., Gallego-Abenza, M., Loretto, M-C., & Sumasgutner, P. 2022.  The spatial and temporal exploitation of anthropogenic food sources by common ravens (Corvus corax) in the Alps. Movement Ecology 10, 35. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-022-00335-4

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Harper, J.R.M., Van Wilgen, N.J., Turner, A.A., Tolley, K.A., Maritz, B., Clusella-Trullas, S., da Silva, J.M., Cunningham, S.J., Cheney, C., De Villiers, A.L., Measey, J., & Foden, W.B. 2022. Application of a trait-based climate change vulnerability assessment to determine management priorities at protected area scale. Conservation Science and Practice. e12756.

 

Pattinson, N. B., van de Ven, T.M.F.N., Finnie, M.J., Nupen, L.J., McKechnie, A.E., & Cunningham, S.J. 2022. Collapse of breeding success in desert-dwelling hornbills evident within a single decade. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 10: https://doi.org /10.3389/fevo.2022.842264

 

Stofberg, M., Amar, A., Sumasgutner, S., & Cunningham, S.J. 2022. Staying cool and eating junk: Influence of heat dissipation and anthropogenic food on foraging and body condition in an urban passerine. Landscape and Urban Planning. 226:104465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2022.104465

 

Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Nupen, L.J., McKechnie, A.E., & Ridley, A.R. 2022. No sex-specific differences in the influence of high air temperatures during early development on nestling mass and fledgling survival in the Southern Pied Babbler (Turdoides bicolor). Ibis. 164: 304-312. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12990

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DL Swanson, F Vezina, AE McKechnie, A Nord. 2022. Avian behavioral and physiological responses to challenging thermal environments and extreme weather events. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10, 1034659.

​

JC Short, MT Freeman, AE McKechnie. 2022. Respirometry protocols for avian thermoregulation at high air temperatures: stepped and steady-state profiles yield similar results. Journal of Experimental Biology 225 (13), jeb244166.

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MT Freeman, ZJ Czenze, K Schoeman, AE McKechnie. 2022. Adaptive variation in the upper limits of avian body temperature. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 119 (26), e2116645119.

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A Pessato, AE McKechnie, MM Mariette. 2022. A prenatal acoustic signal of heat affects thermoregulation capacities at adulthood in an arid-adapted bird. Scientific Reports 12 (1), 5842.

​

SR Green, R Al‐Attar, AE McKechnie, S Naidoo, KB Storey. 2022. Phosphorylation status of pyruvate dehydrogenase in the mousebird Colius striatus undergoing torpor. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological and Integrative Physiology. 337: 337-345.

​​

AE McKechnie. 2022. Regulation of body temperature: patterns and processes. Sturkie's Avian Physiology, 1231-1264.

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ZJ Czenze, B Smit, B van Jaarsveld, MT Freeman, AE McKechnie. 2022. Caves, crevices and cooling capacity: roost microclimate predicts heat tolerance in bats. Functional Ecology 36 (1), 38-50.

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2021

​

Bates, A,E.., Primack, R.B., PAN-Environment Working Group* & Duarte, C.M. 2021. Global COVID-19 lockdown highlights humans as both threats and custodians of the environment. Biological Conservation. 263:109175. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109175 *339 authors, including Cunningham, S.J.

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Catto, S., Sumasgutner, P., Amar, A., Thomson, R. L., & Cunningham, S.J. 2021. Pulses of anthropogenic food appear to benefit parents, but compromise nestling growth in urban Red-winged Starlings. Oecologia. 197: 565-576. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-021-05033-3.

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Bourne, A.R., Ridley, A.R., Spottiswoode, C.N. & Cunningham, S.J. 2021. Direct and indirect effects of high temperatures on fledging in a cooperatively breeding bird. Behavioral Ecology. arab087, https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arab087

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Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Nupen, L.J., McKechnie, A.E., & Ridley, A.R. 2021. No sex-specific differences in the influence of high air temperatures during early development on nestling mass and fledgling survival in the Southern Pied Babbler (Turdoides bicolor). Ibis. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12990

​

Bourne, A.R., Ridley, A.R., McKechnie, A.E., Spottiswoode, C.N. & Cunningham, S.J. 2021. Dehydration risk is associated with reduced nest attendance and hatching success in a cooperatively breeding bird, the southern pied babbler Turdoides bicolor. Conservation Physiology 9. coab043.

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Moagi, L.L., Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Jansen, R., Ngcamphalala, C.A., Ganswindt, A., Ridley, A.R., & McKechnie, A.E. 2021. Hot days are associated with short-term adrenocortical responses in a southern African arid-zone passerine bird. Journal of Experimental Biology. 224. jeb242535

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McKechnie, A.E., Rushworth, I. A., Myburgh, F., & Cunningham, S.J. 2021. Mortality among birds and bats during an extreme heat event in eastern South Africa. Austral Ecology. 46: 687 – 691 .https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.13025

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Bouwer, M., Ngcamphalala, C. A., Ganswindt, A., & McKechnie, A. E. 2021. Validation of a non-invasive technique for quantifying a stress-associated biomarker in a southern African hornbill. Journal of Ornithology, 162(2), 615-619.

​

Cunningham, S.J., Gardner, J., & Martin, R. O. 2021. Missed-opportunity costs and the response of birds and mammals to climate warming. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. http://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2324

 

van Jaarsveld, B., Bennett, N. C., Kemp, R., Czenze, Z. J., & McKechnie, A. E. 2021. Heat tolerance in desert rodents is correlated with microclimate at inter-and intraspecific levels. Journal of Comparative Physiology B, 191(3), 575-588.

van Jaarsveld, B., Bennett, N., Czenze, Z., Kemp, R., Van de Ven, T.M.F.N., Cunningham, S.J., & McKechnie, A.E. 2021. How hornbills handle heat: sex-specific thermoregulation in the southern yellow-billed hornbill. Journal of Experimental Biology. 224 doi: 10.1242/jeb.232777

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McKechnie, A.E., Gerson, A.R. and Wolf, B.O. 2021. Thermoregulation in desert birds: scaling and phylogenetic variation in heat tolerance and evaporative cooling. Journal of Experimental Biology 224: jeb229211.

​

McKechnie, A.E., Rushworth, I. A., Myburgh, F., & Cunningham, S.J. 2021. Mortality among birds and bats during an extreme heat event in eastern South Africa. Austral Ecology. doi:10.1111/aec.13025

​

Noakes, M. J., McKechnie, A. E., & Brigham, R. M. 2021. Interspecific variation in heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity among sympatric temperate-latitude bats. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 99(6), 480-488.

​

Oswald, K.N., Lee, A.T. and Smit, B., 2021. Seasonal metabolic adjustments in an avian evolutionary relict restricted to mountain habitat. Journal of Thermal Biology, 95, 102815.

​

Oswald, K. N., Smit, B., Lee, A. T., Peng, C. L., Brock, C., & Cunningham, S. J. 2021. Higher temperatures are associated with reduced nestling body condition in a range‐restricted mountain bird. Journal of Avian Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/jav.02756

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Ridley, A. R., Wiley, E. M., Bourne, A. R., Cunningham, S. J., & Nelson-Flower, M. J. 2021. Understanding the potential impact of climate change on the behavior and demography of social species: The pied babbler (Turdoides bicolor) as a case study. Advances in the Study of Behaviour https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.asb.2021.03.005

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2020

 

Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Spottiswoode, C.N. and Ridley, A.R., 2020. Hot droughts compromise interannual survival across all group sizes in a cooperatively breeding bird. Ecology Letters doi: 10.1111/ele.13604

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Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Spottiswoode, C., Ridley, A.R. (2020). Compensatory breeding in years following drought in a desert-dwelling cooperative breeder. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 8: 190. available https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2020.00190/full

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Bourne, A.R., Cunningham, S.J., Spottiswoode, C., Ridley, A.R. (2020). High temperatures drive offspring mortality in a cooperatively breeding bird. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 287 (1931). available  https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2020.1140

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Conradie, S.R., Woodborne, S.M., Wolf., B.O., Pessato, A., Mariette, M.M. and McKechnie, A.E. 2020. Avian mortality risk during heat waves will increase greatly in arid Australia during the 21st Century. Conservation Physiology 8(1): coaa048.

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Czenze, Z.J., Naidoo, S., Kotze, A. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Bat thermoregulation in the heat: Limits to evaporative cooling capacity in three southern African bats.​ Journal of Thermal Biology 89: 102542.

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Czenze, Z.J., Kemp, R., van Jaarsveld, B., Freeman, M.T., Smit, B., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Regularly drinking desert birds have greater evaporative cooling capacity and higher heat tolerance limits than non-drinking species. Functional Ecology 34(8), 1589-1600.

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Freeman, M.T., Czenze, Z.J., Schoeman, K. and McKechnie, A.E. 2020. Extreme hyperthermia tolerance in the world’s most abundant wild bird. Scientific Reports 10:13098.

​

Green, S.R., al-Attar, R., McKechnie, A.E., Naidoo, S. and Storey, K.B. 2020. Role of Akt signaling pathway regulation in the speckled mousebird (Colius striatus) during torpor displays tissue specific responses. Cellular Signalling 75: 109763.

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Janse van Vuuren, A.K., Kemp, L.V. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). The beak and unfeathered skin as heat radiators in the Southern Ground-hornbill. Journal of Avian Biology. 51

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Kemp, R., Freeman, M.T., van Jaarsveld, B., Czenze, Z.J., Conradie, S.R. and McKechnie, A.E. 2020. Sublethal fitness costs of chronic exposure to hot weather vary between sexes in a threatened desert lark. Emu 120(3): 216-229.

 

Lund, J., Bolopo, D., Thomson, R.L., Elliott, D.L., Arnot, L.F., Kemp, R., Lowney, A.M., McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Winter thermoregulation in free-ranging pygmy falcons in the Kalahari Desert. Journal of Ornithology 161: 549-555.

 

Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Phenotypic flexibility of metabolic rate and evaporative water loss does not vary across a climatic gradient in an Afrotropical passerine bird. Journal of  Experimental Biology 223: jeb220137.

Noakes, M.J., Karasov, W.H. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Seasonal variation in body composition in an Afrotropical passerine bird: increases in pectoral muscle mass are, unexpectedly, associated with lower thermogenic capacity. Journal of Comparative Physiology B 190: 371-380.

Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2020). Seasonal metabolic acclimatization varies in direction and magnitude among years in two arid-zone passerine. Physiological Biochemical Zoology 93: 140-152.

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Oswald, K.N., Diener, E.F., Diener, J.P., Cunningham, S.J., Lee, A.T.K., and Smit, B. 2020. Increasing temperatures increase the risk of reproductive failure in a near threatened alpine ground‐nesting bird, the Cape Rockjumper Chaetops frenatus. Ibis doi: 10.1111/ibi.12846

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Pattinson, N.B., Thompson, M.L., Griego, M., Russell, G., Mitchell, N.J., Martin, R.O., Wolf, B.O., Smit, B., Cunningham, S.J., McKechnie, A.E., Hockey, P.A.R. 2020. Heat dissipation behaviour of birds in seasonally hot, arid‐zones: are there global patterns? Journal of Avian Biology. 51: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jav.02350

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Pessato, A., McKechnie, A.E., Buchanan, K.L. and Mariette, M.M. 2020. Vocal panting: a novel thermoregulatory mechanism for enhancing heat tolerance in a desert-adapted bird. Scientific Reports 10:18914.

 

Rat, M., Mathe‐Hubert, H., McKechnie, A.E., Sueur, C. and Cunningham, S.J., 2020. Extreme and variable environmental temperatures are linked to reduction of social network cohesiveness in a highly social passerine. Oikos doi: 10.1111/oik.07463  ​

​

van de Ven, T.M.F.N., McKechnie, A.E. and Cunningham S.J. 2020. High temperatures are associated with substantial reductions in breeding success and offspring quality in an arid‑zone bird. Oecologia 193:225-235

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Wolf, B.O., McKechnie, A.E., Schmitt, C.J., Czenze, Z.J., Johnson, A.B. and Witt, C.C. 2020. Extreme and variable torpor among high-elevation Andean hummingbird species. Biology Letters 16: 20200428

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2019

​

Bourne, A.R., McKechnie, A.E., Cunningham, S.J., Ridley, A.R., Woodborne, S.M. and Karasov, W.H. (2019). Non-invasive measurement of metabolic rates in wild, free-living birds using doubly labelled water. Functional Ecology 33: 162-174.

​

Conradie, S.R., Woodborne, S.M., Cunningham, S.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Chronic, sublethal effects of high temperatures will cause severe declines in southern African arid-zone birds during the 21st century. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116: 14065-14070.

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Gerson, A.R., McKechnie, A.E., Smit, B., Whitfield, M.C., Smith, E.K., Talbot, W.A., McWhorter, T.J. and Wolf, B.O. (2019) The functional significance of facultative hyperthermia varies with body size and phylogeny. Functional Ecology doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.13274.

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Jepsen, E.M., Ganswindt, A., Ngcamphalala, C.A., Bourne, A.R., Ridley, A.R. and McKechnie, AE. (2019). Non-invasive monitoring of physiological stress in an Afrotropical arid-zone passerine bird, the southern pied babbler. General and Comparative Endocrinology doi: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2019.03.002

​

Kemp, R. and McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Thermal physiology of a range-restricted desert lark. Journal of Comparative Physiology B 189: 131-141.

​

McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Physiological and morphological effects of climate change. In: Dunn, P.O. and Møller, A.P. (Eds) Effects of climate change on birds. 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

​

McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2019). The physiology of heat tolerance in small endotherms. Physiology 34: 302-313.

​

Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Reaction norms for heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity do not vary across a climatic gradient in a passerine bird. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part A 236: 110522.

 

Oswald, K.N., Smit, B., Lee, A.T.K. and Cunningham, S.J. (2019). Behaviour of an alpine range-restricted species is described by interactions between microsite-use and temperature. Animal Behaviour. 157: 177-187.

​

Pietersen, D.W., McKechnie, A.E., Jansen, R., Little, I.T. and Bastos, A.D.S. (2019). Multi-locus phylogeny of African pipits and longclaws (Aves: Motacillidae) highlights taxonomic inconsistencies. Ibis doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12683.

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Ribeiro, Â.M., Puetz, L., Pattinson, N.B., Dálen, L., Deng, Y., Zhang, G., da Fonseca, R.R., Smit, B. and Gilbert, M.T.P. . 2019. 31° South: The physiology of adaptation to arid conditions in a passerine bird. Molecular Ecology. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.15176

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Smit, B., Woodborne, S.M., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Differences in the use of surface water resources by desert birds is revealed using isotopic tracers. The Auk: Ornithological Advances 136 doi.org/10.1093/auk/uky005.

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van de Ven, T.M., McKechnie, A.E. and Cunningham, S.J. (2019). The costs of keeping cool: behavioural trade-offs between foraging and thermoregulation are associated with significant mass losses in an arid-zone bird. Oecologia doi: 10.1007/s00442-019-04486-x

​

van Dyk, M., Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2019). Interactions between humidity and evaporative heat dissipation in a passerine bird. Journal of Comparative Physiology B  doi: 10.1007/s00360-019-01210-2.

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2018

 

Abdu, S., McKechnie, A.E., Lee, A.T.K. and Cunningham, S.J. (2018). Can providing shade at water points help Kalahari birds beat the heat? Journal of Arid Environments 152: 21-27.

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Abdu, S., Lee, A.T.K. and Cunningham, S.J. (2018). The presence of artificial water points structures an arid-zone avian community over small spatial scales. Ostrich. DOI: 10.2989/00306525.2018.1509904

​

Cunningham, S.J. (2018). Birds of the arid zones: living life on the edge. Ostrich 89: 297-298.

​

Lubbe, N., Czenze Z.J., Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2018). The energetic significance of communal roosting and insulated roost nests in a small arid-zone passerine. Ostrich 89: 347-354.

​

Mariette, M., Pessato, A., Buttemer, W.A., McKechnie, A.E., Udino, E., Bennett, A.T.D., Collins, R.N., Meillère A. and Buchanan, K.L. (2018). Parent-embryo acoustic communication: a specialised heat vocalisation allowing embryonic eavesdropping. Scientific Reports 8: 17721.

​

McKechnie, A.E. and Amar, A. (2018). Missing the bigger picture: a response to Beale (2018). Ostrich 89: 151-152.

​

McWhorter, T.J., Gerson, A.R., Talbot, W.A., Smith, E.K., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2018). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: evaporative cooling capacity and thermal tolerance in two Australian parrots. Journal of Experimental Biology 221:  jeb168930.

​

Muller, H. and Bourne, A. (2018). Minimum population size and potential impact of feral and semi-feral donkeys and horses in an arid rangeland. African Zoology 53: 139-144.

​

O’Connor, R.S., Brigham, R.M. and McKechnie, A.E. (2018). Extreme operative temperatures in exposed microsites used by roosting Rufous-cheeked Nightjars (Caprimulgus rufigena): implications for water balance under current and future climate conditions. Canadian Journal of Zoology 96: 1122–1129.

​

O’Connor, R.S., Smit, B., Talbot, W.A., Gerson, A.R., Brigham, R.M., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2018). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: is evaporative cooling more economical in nocturnal birds? Journal of Experimental Biology 221: jeb181420.

​

Oswald, K.N., Lee, A.T.K. and Smit, B. (2018). Comparison of physiological responses to high temperatures in juvenile and adult Cape Rockjumpers (Chaetops frenatus). Ostrich DOI: 10.2989/00306525.2018.1509905

​

Oswald, K.N., Lee, A.T.K. and Smit, B. (2018). Seasonal physiological responses in an alpine range-restricted bird: the Cape Rockjumper (Chaetops frenatus). Journal of Ornithology. 159: 1063-1072. 

​

Pietersen, D.W., Little, I.T., Jansen, R. and McKechnie, A.E. (2018). Predicting the distribution of the vulnerable yellow-breasted pipit (Anthus chloris) using species distribution modelling. Emu – Austral Ornithology 118: 166-172.

​

Smit, B., Whitfield, M.C., Talbot, W.A., Gerson, A.R., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2018). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: phylogenetic variation among avian orders in evaporative cooling capacity and heat tolerance. Journal of Experimental Biology 221:  jeb174870.

​

Stofberg, M., Cunningham, S.J., Sumasgutner, P. and Amar, A. (2019). Juggling a “junk-food” diet: responses of an urban bird to fluctuating anthropogenic-food availability. Urban Ecosystems DOI: 10.1007/s11252-019-00885-3

​

Talbot, W.A., Smith, E.K., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2018). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: metabolism, evaporative cooling and gular flutter in two small owls. Journal of Experimental Biology 221: jeb171108.

​

Thompson, M.L., Cunningham, S.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2018). Interspecific variation in avian thermoregulatory patterns and heat dissipation behaviours in a subtropical desert. Physiology and Behaviour 180: 311-323.

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2017
 

Albright, T.P., Mutiibwa, D., Gerson, A.R., Krabbe Smith, E., Talbot, W.A., O'Neill, J.J., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2017). Mapping evaporative water loss in desert passerines reveals an expanding threat of lethal dehydration. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science 114: 2283-2288.

 

Chambers, L.E., Barnard, P., Poloczanska, E.S., Hobday, A.J., Keatley, M.R., Allsopp, N. and Underhill, L.G. (2017). Southern hemisphere biodiversity and global change: data gaps and strategies. Austral Ecology 42: 20-30. 

 

Cunningham, S.J., Thompson, M.L. and McKechnie, A.E. (2017). It's cool to be dominant: social status alters short-term risks of heat stress. Journal of Experimental Biology 220: 1558-1562.

 

Kemp, R., Noakes, M.J. and McKechnie. A.E. (2017). Thermoregulation in free‐ranging ground woodpeckers (Geocolaptes olivaceus): no evidence of torpor. Journal of Avian Biology 48: 1287-1294.

Lee, A.T.K. and Barnard P. (2017). How well do bird atlas reporting rates reflect bird densities? Correlates of detection from the Fynbos biome, South Africa, with applications for population estimation, Ostrich, 88:1, 9-17, DOI: 10.2989/00306525.2016.1219413. 

 

Lee, A.T.K., Wright, D. and Barnard P. (2017). Hot bird drinking patterns: drivers of water visitation in a fynbos bird community. African Journal of Ecology 55: 514-553.

 

Lee, A.T.K., Altwegg, R. and Barnard, P. (2017). Estimating conservation metrics from atlas data: the case of southern African endemic birds. Bird Conservation International DOI: 10.1017/S0959270916000307.

 

Mackay B., Lee A.T.K., Barnard P., Møller A.P. and Brown M. (2017). Urbanization, climate and ecological stress indicators in an endemic nectarivore, the Cape sugarbird.  Journal for Ornithology DOI: 10.1007/s10336-017-1460-9.  

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McKechnie, A.E., Coe, B.H., Gerson, A.R. and Wolf, B.O. (2017). Data quality problems undermine analyses of endotherm upper critical temperatures. Journal of Biogeography 44: 2424-2426. 

McKechnie, A.E., Gerson, A.R., McWhorter, T.J., Smith, E.K., Talbot, W.A. and Wolf, B.O. (2017). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: evaporative cooling in five Australian passerines reveals within-order biogeographic variation in heat tolerance. Journal of Experimental Biology 220: 2436-2444. 

 

Noakes, M.J., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2017). Seasonal metabolic acclimatization varies in direction and magnitude among populations of an Afrotropical passerine bird. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 90: 178-189.

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O'Connor, R.S., Brigham, R.M. and McKechnie, A.E. (2017). Diurnal body temperature patterns in free-ranging populations of two southern African arid-zone nightjars. Journal of Avian Biology 48: 1195-1204.

O'Connor, R.S., Wolf, B.O., Brigham, R.M. and McKechnie, A.E. (2017). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: efficient evaporative cooling in two southern African nightjars. Journal of Comparative Physiolgy B 187: 477-491.

 

Oswald, K.N., Evlambiou, A.A., Ribeiro Â.M. and Smit, B. (2017). Tag location and risk assessment for PIT-tagging passerines. Ibis. DOI: 10.1111/ibi.12558

Pattinson, N.B. and Smit, B. (2017). Seasonal behavioral responses of an arid-zone passerine in a hot environment. Physiology and Behavior 179: 268-275. 

 

Smith, E.K., O’Neill, J.J., Gerson, A.R., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2017). Avian thermoregulation in the heat:  resting metabolism, evaporative cooling, and heat tolerance in Sonoran Desert songbirds. Journal of Experimental Biology 220: 3290-3300.

 

Sutherland, W.J., Barnard, P., Broad, S., Clout, M., Connor, B., Côté, I.M., Dicks, L.V., Doran, H., Entwistle, A.C., Fleishman, E., Fox, M., Gaston, K.J., Gibbons, D.W., Jiang, Z., Keim, B., Licorish, F.A., Markillie, P., Monk, K.A., Pearce-Higgins, J.W., Peck, L.S., Pretty, J., Spalding, M.D., Tonneijick, F.H., Wintle, B.C. and Ockendon, N. (2017).  A 2017 horizon scan of emerging issues for global conservation and biological diversity. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 32: 31-40.

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Talbot, W.A., McWhorter, T.J., Gerson, A.R., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2017). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: evaporative cooling capacity of arid-zone caprimulgiforms from two continents. Journal of Experimental Biology 220: 3488-3498.

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Wolf, B.O., Coe, B.H., Gerson, A.R. and McKechnie, A.E. (2017). Systematic errors in data compilation undermine the credibility of Khaliq et al.'s (2014) analysis of endotherm thermal tolerances. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 284: 20162523.

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2016

 

Cunningham, S.J.*, Madden, C.*, Barnard, P. and Amar, A. (2016). Electric crows: powerlines, climate change, and the emergence of a native invader. Diversity and Distributions DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12381. *joint first authors

 

McKechnie, A.E., Smit, B., Whitfield, M.C., Noakes, M.J., Talbot, W.A., Garcia, M., Gerson, A.R. and Wolf, B.O. (2016). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: evaporative cooling capacity in an archetypal desert specialist, Burchell's sandgrouse (Pterocles burchelli). Journal of Experimental Biology 219: 2137-2144.

 

McKechnie, A.E., Whitfield, M.C., Smit, B., Gerson, A.R., Smith, E.K., Talbot, W.A., McWhorter, T.J. and Wolf, B.O. (2016). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: efficient evaporative cooling allows for extreme heat tolerance in four southern Hemisphere columbids. Journal of Experimental Biology 219: 2145-2155.

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Noakes, M.J., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2016). Seasonal and geographical variation in heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity in a passerine bird. Journal of Experimental Biology 219: 859-869.

 

Oswald, K.N. (2016). Observed instances of alarm calling in the Cape Rockjumper. Ostrich 87: 285-288.

 

Smit, B., Zietsman, G., Martin, R.O., Cunningham, S.J., McKechnie, A.E. and Hockey, P.A.R. (2016). Can behaviour provide a basis for rapid assessment of relative vulnerability of desert birds to climate change? Climate Change Responses 3: DOI 10.1186/s40665-016-0023-2.

 

Van de Ven, T.M.F.N., Martin, R.O., Vink, T.J.F., McKechnie, A.E. and Cunningham, S.J. (2016). Regulation of heat exchange across the hornbill beak: functional similarities with toucans? PLoS ONE 11: e0154768.

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2015

Cunningham, S.J., Martin, R.O., and Hockey, P.A.R. (2015). Can behaviour buffer the impacts of climate change on an arid-zone bird? Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology 86: 119-126.

Martin, R.O., Cunningham, S.J. and Hockey, P.A.R. (2015). Elevated temperatures drive fine-scale patterns of habitat use in a savannah bird community. Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology 86: 127-135.

 

McKechnie, A.E. (2015). FE Spotlight: Global variation in avian metabolic rates and the slow pace of life of tropical birds [Invited Commentary]. Functional Ecology 29: 297.

McKechnie, A.E., Noakes, M.J. and Smit, B. (2015). Global patterns of seasonal acclimatization in avian resting metabolic rates. Journal of Ornithology 156: 367-376.

Milne, R., Cunningham, S.J., Lee, A. and Smit, B. (2015). The role of thermal physiology in recent declines of birds in a biodiversity hotspot. Conservation Physiology doi:10.1093/conphys/cov048.

 

Smit, B. and McKechnie, A.E. (2015). Water and energy fluxes during summer in an arid-zone passerine bird. Ibis 157: 774-786.

Whitfield, M.C., Smit, B., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2015). Avian thermoregulation in the heat: scaling of heat tolerance and evaporative cooling capacity in three southern African arid-zone passerines. Journal of Experimental Biology 218: 1705-1714.

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2014

 

Gerson, A.R., Smith, E.K., Smit, B., McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2014). The impact of humidity on evaporative cooling in small desert birds exposed to high air temperatures. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 87: 782-795.

 

Jacobs, P.J. and McKechnie, A.E. (2014). Experimental sources of variation in avian energetics: estimated basal metabolic rate decreases with successive measurements. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 87: 762-769.

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2013

 

Cunningham, S.J., Kruger, A.C., Nxumalo, M.P. and Hockey, P.A.R. (2013). Identifying biologically meaningful hot-weather events using threshold temperatures that affect life-history. PLoS ONE 8: e82492.

 

Cunningham, S.J., Martin, R.O., Hojem, C.L. and Hockey, P.A.R. (2013). Temperatures in excess of critical thresholds threaten nestling growth and survival in a rapidly-warming arid savanna: a study of common fiscals. PLoS ONE 8: e74613.

Noakes, M.J., Smit, B., Wolf, B.O. and McKechnie, A.E. (2013). Thermoregulation in African Green Pigeons (Treron calvus) and a re-analysis of insular effects on basal metabolic rate and heterothermy in columbid birds. Journal of Comparative Physiology B 183: 969-982. 

Smit, B., Harding, C.T., Hockey, P.A.R. and McKechnie, A.E. (2013). Adaptive thermoregulation during summer in two populations of an arid-zone passerine. Ecology 94: 1142-1154.

Van de Ven, T.M.F.N., Mzilikazi, N. and McKechnie A.E. (2013). Phenotypic flexibility in body mass, basal metabolic rate and summit metabolism in southern red bishops (Euplectes orix): Responses to short-term thermal acclimation. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A 165: 319-327.

Van de Ven, T.M.F.N., Mzilikazi, N. and McKechnie, A.E. (2013). Seasonal metabolic variation in two populations of an Afrotropical euplectid bird. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 86: 19-26.

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2012

 

du Plessis, K.L., Martin, R.W., Hockey, P.A.R., Cunningham, S.J. and Ridley, A.R. (2012). The costs of keeping cool in a warming world: implications of high temperatures for foraging, thermoregulation and body condition of an arid-zone bird. Global Change Biology 18: 3063-3070.

McKechnie, A.E., Hockey, P.A.R. and Wolf, B.O. (2012). Feeling the heat: Australian landbirds and climate change. Emu 112: i-vii.

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2011

 

Boyles, J.G., Seebacher, F., Smit, B. and McKechnie, A.E. (2011). Adaptive thermoregulation in endotherms may alter responses to climate change. Integrative and Comparative Biology 51: 676-690.

 

Boyles, J.G., Smit, B. and McKechnie, A.E. (2011). A new comparative metric for estimating heterothermy in endotherms. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 84: 115-123.

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2010

 

McKechnie, A.E. and Wolf, B.O. (2010). Climate change increases the likelihood of catastrophic avian mortality events during extreme heat waves. Biology Letters 6: 253-256.