Basal metabolic rates in mammals: allometry, phylogeny and ecology

Basal metabolic rate in mammals increases allometrically with body weight, irrespective of the taxonomic level chosen for analysis. Species' deviations from the allometric curve (relative basal metabolic rates) are associated with differences in diet, habitat and taxonomic affinity. When correlations with taxonomy are controlled for, the only consistently significant association that remains is the higher relative basal metabolic rates of vertebrate eaters.