During this time, they remain curled into a ball.įrogs sleep through summer and remain active in winter. When the temperature is above 86☏, hedgehogs lower their metabolism and survive on the fat stored in their body for as long as 6 weeks. The mucus that seals the entrance helps to retain moisture. Their shells serve as a protective covering, helping them remain cool. They dig holes underground and hide within leaf litter. Snails can withstand the harsh winter but not the intense summer heat. Some crabs may hibernate for a little longer.Īnimals that Hibernate (or Aestivate) in Summer Name of the animal They remain in the soil during this time for 4-6 weeks. These crabs hibernate when the temperature falls below 68 ☏. They cannot live when it is freezing and burrow under leaf litters. They hibernate underwater, with some individuals moving quite slowly in this period. If food is scarce, they preserve their energy by entering into torpor and also reduce their body temperature. They hibernate throughout the colder months to survive. Their sleep is so deep that they wouldn’t wake up to any loud noise or even if touched or disturbed. They are true hibernators, with their heart rate and body temperature dipping drastically. Groundhogs hibernate between October and April for not more than three months.

They shed around 30% of their weight then and search for gardens, sheds, and patios to hide till spring. They get into sleep mode between December and March. They even lower their heartbeat to 3-4 beats/per minute and take not more than 2 to 3 breaths per minute. The marmots lower their body temperature during this time and survive on the fat and water stored by their body. They hibernate in groups for as long as eight months. They nestle in leaf litter, and their body temperature lowers to such an extent that they almost freeze. Their heartbeat drops to as low as 4 beats/ minute from 100 beats/minute. During this time, their temperature falls from 99☏ to 38☏. During this time, their metabolism slows, and they stop eating. They don’t hibernate but, like other cold-blooded animals, enter into brumation during winter. One individual was recorded to hibernate for 85 days during the 1947-1948 season. These birds remain asleep or in torpor for a couple of weeks or even months. They choose leaf piles or hollow logs as their hibernation spots. However, some bat species may also migrate to warmer regions in winter instead of becoming inactive. Their favorable spots include buildings, hollow trees, and barns. Some bats hibernate solitarily, while a few form colonies. They even urinate and defecate during that period.īats hibernate during November and don’t come out until March or April. Instead, they try maintaining a normal body temperature and feed on the food they have stored rather than entirely relying on fat reserves. They take shelter in their burrows but don’t sleep through that time. Most chipmunk species hibernate when the temperatures go beyond the freezing point. During hibernation, the squirrels enter into torpor (inactivity) where their metabolism drops to 1% and their body temperature almost reach a freezing point. They hibernate underneath burrows for 5-8 months. The queen sleeps through the colder months and wakes up in spring to set up a new colony. They don’t eat, drink or defecate during hibernation.Īll bumblebees save the queen die in winter. Contrary to the belief, they don’t sleep continually through the period they hibernate but wake up in intervals and move around in their dens. Researchers thought their deep sleep to be torpor and not hibernation until studies conducted in 20. List of Hibernating Animals Animals that Hibernate in Winter Name of the animalīears are a classic example of true hibernators. While hibernation is winter sleep, aestivation is summer sleep. However, when they are inactive, which happens mostly at night, there is a drop in metabolic rate and body temperature.Īestivation is not a kind of hibernation but an equivalent to it.

In the case of daily torpor, animals have normal metabolic rates and body temperature during the time of the day they are active. It could go on for weeks or even months or last for less than 24 hrs (daily torpor).

Torpor: Torpor is the time of inactivity when the hibernator maintains a low metabolism and body temperature.

They don’t sleep through that period, unlike true hibernators but wake to drink water between their periods of inactivity.

Brumation: It is not truly hibernation but a state of inactivity or torpor seen in amphibians and reptiles.

Their body, temperature, heart rate, breathing, and metabolism lowers.

True hibernation: This is the most traditional type of hibernation, where animals become completely inactive in winter, going into a deep sleep.

Migrate and hibernate animals