Some of winter’s effects have been tied to cultural norms and practices, while others likely reflect our bodies’ innate biological responses to shorter days and colder weather.
Bees that can adapt to the changing climate around us offer hope for more research and better policy and conservation efforts.
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Olga Koppel, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
Seventy-two per cent of native bumblebee species in North America are cutting their winter hibernation short by timing their emergence to earlier spring onsets.
When not hibernating, ground squirrels need to feast to store energy.
Robert Streiffer
Months not eating or moving don’t result in muscle wasting and loss of function for animals that hibernate. New research found gut microbes help their hosts hold onto and use nitrogen to build proteins.
Once thought to occur only in birds and mammals in the Northern Hemisphere, due to the more pronounced winters, we now know torpor is widespread in small Australian mammals.
Scientists have discovered that the gray mouse lemur has the ability to hibernate.
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Gray mouse lemurs are more closely related to humans than mice. They also have the ability to hibernate, and researchers are hoping to learn how to transfer that ability to humans.
According to the Norse sagas, the kraken terrorized sailors off the coasts of Norway and Greenland.
(John Gibson)
Jumbo squids live in extreme environments. Tiny genetic modifications allow them to move back and forth from the surface of the ocean to its bottom, killing and eating everything in their path.
Chipmunks have a superpower: hibernation.
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Researchers are puzzled by a fungus that is killing millions of bats.
Three North American little brown bats with signs of white-nose syndrome, which is virtually certain to hit Australian bats without further action.
KDFWR/Terry Derting
It’s been a deadly summer for Australia’s wildlife. But beyond the fires, we need to act now to protect bats – which make up a quarter of Australian mammal species – from a silent overseas killer.
Yes, I am a bit chilly, why?
tim elliott/Shutterstock.com
When you’re warm and cozy inside, it can be natural to wonder if the animals you see outside your window this winter are doing OK. Don’t worry – they’re doing better out there than you would.
Stink bug sightings are on the rise. In winter, they tend to move indoors to wait out the cold weather.
(John Slaney/Flickr)
With the onset of cooler temperatures and shorter days, some insects pack-up and migrate to warmer climates. Others, including stink bugs, take up residence in our homes.
Turtles can’t head south for the winter, so they hibernate in rivers, lakes and ponds.
Poverty is associated with a great number of health problems. One relatively recent health crisis largely attributed to poverty is obesity. According to the World Health Organisation, obesity rates have…
For life to persist, it must tolerate its environment. The depth of an arctic winter is formidable, and is most notably overcome by hibernation. But some reptiles and amphibians survive by allowing their…
Rise and shine, your mum sacrificed a lot for you.
When it comes to feats of physiology, bears are among the superstars of the mammalian world. Their endurance is unmatched. During hibernation, bears regularly survive up to six full months without consuming…