Submitted by Nathan Bolls

Shunryu Suzuki once said, “We ourselves cannot put any magic spells on this world. The world is its own magic.”

It is amazing the most of the smaller mammals in our area—including the deer mouse, white-footed mouse and prairie vole, plus 7 or 8 others—do not hibernate during winter months.

But four species that might be found in our area do spend some months in hibernation: 13-lined ground squirrel, Franklin’s ground squirrel, eastern chipmunk and the meadow jumping mouse.

For a successful hibernation, first comes “packin’ on the pounds.” Then, governed primarily by daily light and endocrine cycles, the animal’s metabolic rate, heart rate, kidney function and body temperature begin to decrease. Body temperature sometimes lowers almost to that of air in the den. The animal becomes torpid and can exist in this state for months—”like a cold-blooded animal that has been chilled” according to the late Knut Schmidt-Nielsen, famous ecological physiologist.

Arousal from hibernation is a dramatic event, accompanied by violent shaking, muscle contractions and drawing energy for heat production from a special “brown fat” located in patches along the neck and between the shoulders. Then, look out grasses, seeds, grasshoppers (yes), and members of the opposite sex!