Animals use a combination of strategies to get through winter

ANIMALS: they’re just like us! All mammals—including humans—use a combination of strategies to get through the long, cold winter SCARF CALORIES SLEEP MORE INCREASE INSULATION Wolves would rather eat fresh kills, but they’ll rely on frozen deer or moose carcasses if necessary. Groundhogs plump up ahead of hibernation; they gain a layer of fat up to two centimetres thick. Chipmunks enter a state of “torpor” (inactivity) for chunks of time. Their body temperature drops and their metabolic rate slows. Both get a heavier fur coat for the winter. When resting, the Arctic fox wraps itself in its long, bushy tail for extra warmth. Deer mice don’t grow a thick coat, but they do snuggle up in fur- or feather-lined nests when it’s time to snooze.…

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Cottage Life (Digital) - 1 Issue, Winter 2024

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