Animals: hibernation

Our kindergarten class wants to know why some animals hibernate in the winter and some do not?

Dear Ms. O,

You and your class have asked a great science question. As you already know, when wintertime arrives it brings cold temperatures. For animals that need to hunt for their food snow and ice sometimes covers valuable food sources and the cold keeps new food from growing.

Some animals like bears understand that food is hard to find during winter. So they will eat as much food as they can during the warmer months and sleep during the winter. When they go to sleep their bodies will break down all of the food more slowly then when they are awake. In fact, all of their body functions, like their heartbeat and their breathing, slow down to help conserve valuable energy. Once spring arrives their body processes speed up again at the same time that food is plentiful.

Other animals like squirrels don’t need to hibernate because their food (nuts and seeds) can be found all year long and it can be easily stored in the trees or in the ground.

Thank you for contacting me and good luck future scientists!
Professor Science