Oxygen consumption (Vo 2 ), thermal conductance (Cmin), body temperature (Tb) and evaporative water loss (EWL) of the spectacled dormouse Graphiurus ocularis (A. Smith 1829) were measured at ambient temperatures (T.) between 5 and 35 °C. G. ocularis is not well adapted to high T.s and above T. = 30 oc there was a significant increase in Cmin and EWL. An elevated Tb above the lower critical limit of thermoneutrality (T 1 c) was recorded before more energetically expensive cooling mechanisms were employed. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) and Cmin were lower than expected relative to body mass. It is hypothesised that the interplay of lower-than-expected BMR and Cmin is an adaptation to scarce and unpredictable food resources. G. ocularis exhibited patterns of torpor intermediate between those of subtropical and temperate dormice.