Ask Mike: The fine art of hibernation
Hey Guys,
Some people dream of soaring like birds. Me? I’d rather be a bear so I can hibernate for months at a time. But is that really how hibernation works? And are bears the only species that does it?
Turns out hibernation isn’t limited to the fearsome bear. According to NOVA, plenty of other creatures settle down for long winter naps, including the woodchuck, chipmunk, and raccoon. But whereas these smaller creatures have to wake up every several days, the American Black Bears can sleep for as long as 100 days at a time.
To prepare for hibernation, a bear hits the buffet pretty hard. Bears pack on an extra 40 pounds of fat per week that can be slowly burned off while sleeping. A bear’s heart rate drops dramatically.
A common misconception is that a hibernating bear is in a state of deep sleep. Not so. “Bears do not enter a state of deep hibernation because they need a higher body temperature in order to meet the demands of pregnancy, birth, and the nursing of young,” according to PBI. Bears who are new moms still take excellent care of the cubs, waking up regularly during winter to make sure the babies are in good health.
According to Bear.org, “hibernation… can last over 7 months in the northern portion of the black bear range where abundant, high quality food is available only from May through August.” In other areas, the bear’s hibernation is considerably shorter.
Some experts argue that technically a black bear doesn’t hibernate at all. Instead, they enter “a state of sedation referred to as torpor.” But no matter what you call it, the bear doesn’t do a lot during the winter, and that sounds like a pretty nice life to me.
How about you guys? What sort of animals do you wish to be? Honey badger? Liger? Radioactive spider with the power to grant unsuspecting teenagers superhero-like powers? Leave a comment below.
Thanks,
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
- Rating:
(47 votes, average: 3.91) - Permalink
- Comments (28)
Loading ...
Subscribe
A jumping red panda! Or a hamster. So I can get into those hamster ball things. And literally walk around in a bubble.
“they enter a state of sedation referred to as torpor.” Just like everybody’s Uncle Dave at Thanksgiving. LOL
I don’t think I’d like being an animal, though. I’m kind of attached to the things I can do that only humans can do.
Most people would want to be a werewolf, but I think a werebear is much cooler. A werewolf is much larger than a wolf in the full moon, right? So how big would a werebear be? Enough to swipe away a house with a single blow.
It seems as though bears are the only hibernating specie in addition to (if I remember correctly) a few whales.
%Jocues Cousteau researched a few of these while in his craft, H.M.S. Calypso.
Although my Great Dane can out-sleep any bear (Oh, if only I could rest as completely as he does!) it seems that wild bears were intended to use sleep as a survival-mechanism.
I would like to turn into an animal that can morph into other animals at will. That would be sweet!
I think bears are pretty awesome- they can hibernate without food for 7 months? Maybe is the amount of fat they have.
I’m with you Mike…A long .winter’s nap has always been my dream state I like the part bout eating that much to see you through the season as well. I hadn’t realized that. Of course you wake up not only refreshed but with the same svelte figure you had last season! Sounds good to me…I think we’re very interesting creatures, we bears!
i like unicorns…
Two teenage boys have it coved can sleep for long periods of time(hibernation) angry when awoken then eat everything in sight, yes defiantly related to bears
Bears and all those fat animals can hibernate.
Only if you got lots and lots of fat, lol.
i would think like hedgehops and other animals go into hibernation as well
Anything that doesn’t involve having to pay taxes
Animals that hybernate lower their digestion rhythm to a scale close to nill, switching off after eating a considerable amount of nutritions fresh food. Animals that live near the equator can sleep a long time as well to digest meat even during the hot wheather. The boa constrictor as it’s described in literature takes ages to search for food again after swallowing a baby-cattle.
Bears don’t actually hibernate, they are dormant.
Turtles and tortoises hibernate also.
no bears are not the only animals that hibernate
heres a list of warmblooded animals that also do:
Badgers
Bats
Chipmunks
Dormouse
Fat-tailed lemurs
Ground squirrels
Hamsters
Marmots
Groundhogs
Woodchucks
Hedgehogs
Nighthawks
Raccoon
Skunks
here r some cold blooded animals:
Bees
Earthworms
Frogs
toads
Lizards
Mud Turtles
Snails
Snakes
id be a radioactive spider
i wish to be an eagle, i am afraid of heights while eagle isn’t. so i will fly up high without being scared. that’s what i want:)
I just like to be a bear. I have these winter depressions anyway and just sleeping them off sounds wonderful.
I would like to be a sloth–then I’d have an EXCUSE for being lazy.
i agree
I would want to be an ant. They have a well working society, they have specific places and ants for everything, and the hive can be up to 6 feet deep.
A bird like a dove. It would be nice if I could fly as high as I wanted and not be afraid of heights. Plus it would be hard for any ground animals to catch me and if you think about it, birds are free.
I love doves. They are the bird of peace and I hate violence and wars so I’m more of a peaceful person like the dove. =)
i want to be an amoeba
My husband hibernates ALL THE TIME. He’s excellent at it and loves it more than anything. No seriously, why do a lot of men just love to sleep so many hours instead of being useful??!
I want to be the fiercest part of the canine family, the Chihuahua!!!! or, a polar bear!
If I had a choice I would much rather be a radioactive spider with the power to grant unsuspecting teenagers superhero powers because they’re our future. Now I must eat to put on my winter fat.