Thermal Constant
Definition
A thermal constant is a model-specific temperature-time quantity for a defined developmental origin and endpoint. The taxon, conditions and units must match the reference: a hatch-to-pupariation requirement is not automatically an egg-to-adult requirement or interchangeable between degree-hours and degree-days.
- Context
- Development parameters
For example, a requirement reported in degree-hours from hatching to pupariation cannot be treated as degree-days from egg laying to adulthood.
For example, a hatch-to-pupariation requirement is different from an egg-to-adult requirement.
A familiar species name does not validate an invented thermal requirement.
Related terms
- Accumulated Degree Hours (ADH)
- Accumulated temperature-time above a defined developmental threshold, expressed in degree-hours under a specified model. In a fictional linear model with a base...
- Base Temperature
- A lower threshold parameter belonging to a specified developmental model, not a universal survival limit. A lower threshold is a parameter of...
- Instar
- A stage between moults, interpreted using appropriate taxonomic evidence. Typical blow flies have three larval instars, but that count is not a...
- Posterior Spiracles
- Respiratory openings whose form can help identification when interpreted with an appropriate key. Posterior features should be assessed with an appropriate taxonomic...
- Ptilinum
- An inflatable head structure used by certain adult flies during emergence from the puparium. Adult characters can provide useful taxonomic information. Its...
- Pupariation
- Formation of the puparium from the final larval cuticle in relevant flies. The pupa develops within that enclosure; the puparium and pupa...
- Puparium
- The hardened final larval cuticle surrounding subsequent development in relevant flies, not identical to the pupa. The pupa develops within that enclosure;...
Explained in
- The Blow Fly Life Cycle: Egg to AdultA model-specific accumulated temperature quantity for a defined developmental endpoint.