CHANGES IN HEART RATE VARIABILITY DURING DIVING IN YOUNG HARBOR SEALS, PHOCA VITULINA

We studied changes in the patterns of heart rate variability (HRV) that coincide with the development of diving skills in harbor seal pups, Phoca vitulina. Heart rate measurements were collected remotely. Spectral analysis of HRV revealed power within a mid‐frequency band (0.1–0.3 Hz) which was prom...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine mammal science 2004-10, Vol.20 (4), p.861-871
Main Authors: Greaves, Danielle K., Hughson, Richard L., Topor, Zbigniew, Schreer, Jason F., Burns, Jennifer M., Hammill, Michael O.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
cardiovascular function
development
diving heart rate
fast Fourier transform
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
harbor seal
heart rate variability
Marine
Phoca vitulina
respiratory sinus arrhythmia
spectral analysis
Vertebrates: body movement. Posture. Locomotion. Flight. Swimming. Physical exercise. Rest. Sports
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Summary:We studied changes in the patterns of heart rate variability (HRV) that coincide with the development of diving skills in harbor seal pups, Phoca vitulina. Heart rate measurements were collected remotely. Spectral analysis of HRV revealed power within a mid‐frequency band (0.1–0.3 Hz) which was prominent, especially in pups less than 10 d of age. In these younger pups, the heart rate switched cyclically between a low and a high diving heart rate every 3–10 sec. Older pups exhibited a highly controlled diving bradycardia with a lower median and a lower variance when compared to younger individuals. These results provide new insight into the maturation of the bradycardia component of the dive response in harbor seal pups.
ISSN:0824-0469
1748-7692
DOI:10.1111/j.1748-7692.2004.tb01197.x