Winter is coming to the northern hemisphere of the planet, which is why many animals begin to prepare or escape from the low temperatures. Unlike humans, animals cannot bundle up or take refuge in heating, so they must develop different strategies to survive this time of year.
An example of this is the wolf spiders, which survive the cold by digging into the ground, or hiding under leaf litter or inside tree trunks. This is because spiders are ectothermic animals, so they do not produce heat and their metabolism slows down when the temperature drops. Weaver spiders, on the other hand, weave egg sacs with several layers of silk to protect them from winter, while others produce special compounds that prevent ice crystals from forming inside their bodies.
But these are not the only animals that have developed survival strategies, turtles also do. During the winter months, this species becomes even slower. Therefore, they dig into the ground to stay there and take refuge in their shells, where they enter a period of inactive dormancy, called brumation, which they survive by using their fat reserves.
Although they are reptiles that need to breathe air, during the months of low temperatures they can absorb oxygen from the water and release carbon dioxide into it. When oxygen is scarce, turtles can enter a metabolic mode in which they do not require oxygen. Although this can lead to a dangerous accumulation of lactic acid, these animals can cannibalize the calcium in their shells and neutralize this buildup.
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The strategy of bees to survive winter
Unlike the animals mentioned above, European bees are able to group together and remain active in their hives during the winter. For this, bees gather around the queen to regulate the group’s composition and cope with temperature changes. These insects generate heat from the contraction and relaxation of muscles they use to move their wings during flight.
By being positioned in the middle, the queen remains in the warmest and most comfortable place in the swarm, but even the other bees enjoy this warmth, as they do not freeze. This strategy seems simple but requires months of planning, as during the summer months these insects produce and store about 40 kilos of honey to sustain the hive during winter. They also carefully choose the location of the hive, building it at the highest part of a tree cavity to create a warm microenvironment.
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Squirrels build a bunker against the cold
Eastern chipmunks do not hibernate throughout the season but stay in their burrows, tunnels, and chambers that connect to places where they store seeds or nuts to survive the cold.
These eastern chipmunks can spend several days in a state of torpor, during which their heart rate drops from about 350 beats per minute to single digits, and their body temperature drops from 34°C to 4°C. However, they wake up every few days to eat and use designated chambers for their needs.
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Birds escape winter
About 70% of birds in the U.S. and Canada are migratory, so it is common for them to head south for the winter, according to Jill Deppe, director of the Migratory Bird Initiative at the National Audubon Society.
According to this organization, over 450 species of birds migrate to warmer places, such as the ruby-throated hummingbird. This bird, which weighs the same as a coin, is capable of crossing the Gulf of Mexico in a single day, an 800-kilometer stretch.
This demonstrates the astonishing ability of animals to navigate through the toughest seasons of the year on their own, without the help of heating or cooling systems.
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