Many woodland mammals eat plants during the warm months. When winter comes, these plants die or are covered with snow, and the animals have nothing to eat. But nature has provided them with a way to survive the I winter. It’s called hibernation, from the Latin word that means “winter.”
Animals that hibernate eat much more than they need during
the summer, and the excess food is stored in their fat. Then when cold weather comes, the animals crawl into a hole and go to sleep.
Their heartbeat and their breathing slow down, and their body temperature drops. In this state, animals need very little food. They can get the nourishment they need from the fat in their bodies, and don’t have to eat a single thing through the entire winter!
The gopher, the woodchuck, the chipmunk, certain bats, and many rodents hibernate through the winter. But some animals, such as the bear and the squirrel, retire Co winter homes when cold weather comes, but don’t really hibernate. They sleep a lot in winter, but wake up from time to time to eat.
Related Posts
-
What Is Winter Like on Mars and How Low Do Temperatures Get On the Planet Mars During the Winter Season?
During winter in the southern hemisphere on Mars, the polar ice cap grows to cover almost one-quarter of the planet. At the same time, during summer in the northern hemisphere, the northern ice…
-
Why is flu season in winter and why are more people sick in winter?
It is not cold feet and wet heads that are the problem, infectious disease experts say, but the fact that human beings are warmth-loving social animals. At least in cold climates, widespread outbreaks…
-
Do bears hibernate in the winter like other animals or do they just take a long nap?
Bears do hibernate, though not as deeply as some other hibernating animals. Deep hibernators spend most of the winter with drastically lowered body temperatures. Bears lower their body temperatures only slightly and continue…
-
Why do Car Batteries become Weak and Die in Cold Weather During the Winter Months?
Don't use flashlight batteries when they're cold. They would be just as sluggish as a car battery in winter. Cold inhibits both kinds. They must be somewhere around room temperature if you are…
-
Are There Plants That Eat Animals?
Yes! Plants which trap and eat insects and other small animals are called carnivorous, or meat-eating, plants. These carnivorous plants are usually found in areas where the soil does not have a good…
-
Do All Animals Eat?
We eat every day, but some animals can go for so long without a meal that it might seem they never eat. A snake often eats only once in two weeks or longer,…
