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Some animals hibernate for almost 9 months. But what exactly is going on all this time?
The case of the groundhog
Each winter, to cope with the lack of food, the groundhog hibernates for 6 to 8 months. Deep in its burrow, its physiological functions are slowed down and its body temperature drops from 36 ° C to 8 or 10 ° C. Upstream, it accumulates fat reserves of up to 50% of its weight.
Arctic ground squirrels, a coma
The hibernation of arctic ground squirrels is very long: it lasts from 7 to 9 months. Their heart rate drops from 350 to 3 beats per minute. And upon waking up, they lost almost a third of their body mass.
“The sleeper”, the only bird capable of hibernating
Called “the sleeper” by the Hopi Indians, the Nuttall’s Nightjar is the only known bird capable of hibernating. He can drop his body temperature to 5 ° C and remain completely inactive 90% of winter days.
Those who let themselves be frozen
During its hibernation, the wood frog allows itself to be frozen. Two-thirds of the water in his body freezes, his breathing stops and his heart stops beating. Its cells are preserved thanks to the glucose contained in its blood. In Alaska, it can survive a negative temperature of 16 degrees.
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