News tagged with hibernation

Killer fungus spreads to endangered gray bats: US

A deadly fungus that has wiped out large populations of bats in North America has spread to a new species, the endangered gray bat, US wildlife officials said Tuesday.

Biology / Ecology

created May 29, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 3

Hitting snooze on the molecular clock: Rabies evolves slower in hibernating bats

The rate at which the rabies virus evolves in bats may depend heavily upon the ecological traits of its hosts, according to researchers at the University of Georgia, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 18, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Black bears found to have surprising wound healing capabilities during hibernation

(PhysOrg.com) -- For most mammals, small cuts and scrapes to the skin during times of low body temperature or slowed metabolism usually means a reduced ability to heal and a higher incidence of infection. ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Mar 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 2 | with audio podcast report

Germination of Bacillus species which can lead to food poisoning

Some bacteria can form spores (survival capsules) that are particularly resistant to heat. Since sporogenous bacteria can also cause food poisoning and a reduction in food quality, they constitute a significant ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Feb 13, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 2

Winter diets? The secret is to chill the extremities

It is well known that large mammals living in temperate climates lower their metabolism in winter. But does this represent a mechanism for coping with less food or is it merely a consequence of having less to eat? For the ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Dec 16, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Intestinal stem cells respond to food by supersizing the gut

A new study from University of California, Berkeley, researchers demonstrates that adult stem cells can reshape our organs in response to changes in the body and the environment, a finding that could have ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Oct 27, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Fungus causes white-nose syndrome in bats, researchers confirm

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have proven that the fungus Geomyces destructans causes white-nose syndrome, a fast-spreading and highly lethal disease of bats.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Oct 26, 2011 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Killing crop-eating pests: Compounds work by disrupting bugs' winter sleep

(PhysOrg.com) -- The creation of compounds that disrupt a worldwide pest's winter sleep hints at the potential to develop natural and targeted controls against crop-eating insects, new research suggests.

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 28, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Do lazy mammals live longer?

Small furry mammals partial to a daily dose of hibernation in winter are probably extending their lifespan at the same time, according to a study published Wednesday.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Sep 14, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Climate change could turn oxygen-free seas from a blessing to a curse for zooplankton

Zooplankton can use specialised adaptations that allow them to hide from predators in areas of the ocean where oxygen levels are so low almost nothing can survive - but they may run into trouble as these areas ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jul 01, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Comet-chasing probe goes into hibernation in 10-year trek

A billion-euro (1.47-billion-dollar) space probe was placed in hibernation on Wednesday until 2014, when it will be woken for a deep-space rendezvous with a comet, the European Space Agency (ESA) said. ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Jun 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Hibernation keeps rabies going in bats

(PhysOrg.com) -- In a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, infectious disease biologist Dylan George from Colorado State University reports that a bat’s hibernation is wha ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Jun 07, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast report

Rosetta to sleep through loneliest leg of comet mission

On 8 June, mission controllers will have the first opportunity to switch ESA's Rosetta comet-hunter into deep-space hibernation for 31 months. During this loneliest leg of its decade-long mission, Rosetta ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Jun 06, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Ancient bacterial mats may have been key to first mobile animals

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers from Canada studying the highly salty coastal lagoons at Los Roques, Venezuela and the microbial mats found at the bottom of the sea there, have discovered that oxygen levels in ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created May 16, 2011 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 10 | with audio podcast report

Canadian bears end long hibernation

Bears in westernmost Canada have begun leaving their dens in search of food after hibernating for the winter, officials said Friday, reminding residents to put away tempting treats to avoid deadly encounters.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 14, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Hibernation

Hibernation is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression in animals, characterized by lower body temperature, slower breathing, and lower metabolic rate. Hibernating animals conserve food, especially during winter when food supplies are limited, tapping energy reserves, body fat, at a slow rate. It is the animal's slowed metabolic rate which leads to a reduction in body temperature and not the other way around.

Hibernation may last several days or weeks depending on species, ambient temperature, time of year, and fur on the animal's body. The typical winter season for a hibernator is characterized by periods of hibernation interrupted by sporadic euthermic arousals wherein body temperature is restored to typical levels. There is a hypothesis that hibernators build a need for sleep during hibernation more slowly than normally, and must occasionally warm up in order to sleep. This has been supported by some evidence in the arctic ground squirrel.

For more information about Hibernation, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.