Normally we see squirrels as very active animals and skilful climbers, even some species are capable of gliding from one tree to another. However, these behaviors are related to the habitat where they live, since some squirrels live in areas where the seasons are very marked and the presence of extreme temperatures makes them change their behavior.
Have you ever wondered if squirrels hibernate? In this article on our site we explain how squirrels hibernate, which species carry out this process, when and how.
Why do squirrels hibernate?
Animals have developed various mechanisms to cope with the extreme changes associated with temperature variations in the ecosystems where they live. One of these strategies is hibernation, carried out by certain mammals, which is a process consisting of a series of physiological changes associated with reduced metabolism to minimize energy consumptionwhile the animal goes through this state.
There is a condition to consider that an animal really goes through hibernation, and that is that its body temperature must decrease considerably.
In this sense, squirrels do hibernate because when they live in places with very cold and prolonged winters,food is scarce considerably, so if they did not enter this period of lethargy and hibernal inactivity, which, as we have said, leads to a metabolic decrease, they could die by not feeding and maintaining the same physiological rhythm.
Which squirrels hibernate?
Squirrels are part of a diverse group that is traditionally classified into three types: tree squirrels, flying squirrels, and ground squirrels. Of these, those that hibernate are some species of ground squirrels, which develop habits at ground level and dig burrows where they live.
Let's see some examples below:
- Arctic ground squirrel (Urocitellus parryii): native to northeastern Canada and British Columbia, with a presence also in Russia and Alaska.
- Mexican ground squirrel (Ictidomys mexicanus): inhabits Mexico and the United States.
- European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus): it is native to various regions, such as Austria, Bulgaria, Czechia, Greece, Hungary, Moldova, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey and Ukraine.
- Perote ground squirrel (Xeros permophilus perotensis): endemic to Mexico.
- Daurian ground squirrel (Spermophilus dauricus): native to China, Mongolia and Russia.
- Red ground squirrel (Spermophilus major): inhabits Russia and Kazakhstan.
- Thirteen-lined ground squirrel (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus): native to Canada and the United States.
- Spotted ground squirrel or spotted ground squirrel (Xerospermophilus spilosoma): lives in Mexico and the United States.
In what month do squirrels hibernate?
Both the time and months in which squirrels hibernate can vary depending on the species. Let's look at some specific cases.
- Arctic Ground Squirrel: only are active 3-5 months a year, since the rest of the time they are forced to hibernate. The females begin the hibernation season at the beginning of August, while the males do so beginning in September. They last between 215 and 240 days in torpor and females are usually longer in this state. The young hibernate for the shortest time, although they are the last to leave this state.
- Mexican ground squirrel: [1] has been reported in this speciesthat males begin and end hibernation before females, and that the young begin the process several months after the adults. Burrow dives begin towards the end of July and mid-August for males, while for females they last until September. Exits from hibernation can be discontinuous, occurring from February, but more frequently from March.
- European ground squirrel: This species spends about 6 months in hibernation, beginning the process approximately in August and, although eventually some squirrels may emerge in March, it is usually in April when temperatures begin to rise above 0 ºC. These lapses are common for other European ground squirrels.
- Reddish Ground Squirrel: This type of squirrel has a short period of active time in the year, which can barely be between 50 and 110 days, approximately. The males go into hibernation at mid-June, but both thefemales as the youngest around late August or early September. In April the males begin to emerge, as the females become active when the snow is already melting.
- Daurian ground squirrel: This Asian squirrel hibernates for about 3 months, starting this period at the end of November and ending when the month of March begins.
How do squirrels prepare to hibernate?
Now that you know that squirrels hibernate and what species do, let's learn how they prepare to enter this state of torpor. The first aspect that we can mention regarding the preparation of the squirrels before hibernation has to do with an increase in body fat reserves, since during hibernation During idle time they will not feed, so as long as they are active they will consume large amounts of food to build up these reserves.
The next aspect to consider is the den, which consists of an appropriate underground space to be kept during all the months of inactivity. Squirrels can be very aggressive with their hibernation spaces because they are critical to survival. Thus, in habitats where there is presence of vegetation, these rodents preferably opt for dens under the plants to ensure better temperatures and protection from very strong winds or storms.
On the other hand, the onset of hibernation does not happen abruptly, but squirrels, like other animals that hibernate, can do little trialsin which they lower their body temperature a little and then raise it again. Later, when they really start the process, the squirrels lower their body temperature with a minimal difference to the external one, which can be from 1 ºC or less. His breathing rate also slows from 200 breaths to only about 4 or 5 per minute, and his heart beats from 150 to 5 per minute.
During hibernation, squirrels have episodes in which the body temperature rises and the metabolism is activated in a certain way, this it probably occurs to ensure the functioning of certain systems, such as the brain. After a day or two of activation, they return to their torpor.
How do squirrels hibernate?
As we already know, the squirrels that hibernate are the ground ones, so they do it buried in the ground, in burrows that dig up to 1 meter or more deep, where they not only spend this downtime, but also shelter from predators, rest and breed. Generally, these rodents live in family colonies, so hibernation occurs in a group
Now that you know what life is like for squirrels in winter, when they live in places where temperatures drop a lot, don't stop learning and don't miss these other articles:
- Where do squirrels live?
- Squirrel feeding
