Two experiments examined the effect of ambient temperature during ethanol exposure on development of conditioned taste aversion to saccharin. In both studies, male albino rats receiving saccharin-ethanol (1.5 g/kg, IP) pairings followed by 6-h exposure to a 32 degrees C environment developed a weaker saccharin aversion than did rats experiencing ethanol at room temperature. Exposure to the warm environment reduced ethanol-induced hypothermia, but enhanced ethanol's motor-impairing effect. The influence of ambient temperature on ethanol-induced taste aversion may be due to changes in body temperature, neural sensitivity, or elimination rate. Although alternative accounts cannot be entirely dismissed, this outcome suggests that ethanol-induced hypothermia plays a role in determining strength of conditioned taste aversion and thus may be involved in the regulation of oral ethanol intake in rats.