Hibernation:
I work for a science museum and I have prepared an exhibition connected to Time. Therefore, my topic is hibernation.
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First, I would like to define hibernation and to explain how it is different from sleep. According to scientists and biologists hibernation is different from sleep. With normal sleep, the animal moves a little, has an active brain, and can wake up very quickly .A hibernator appears to be dead because the animal's heart rate slows down and the body temperature drops to almost the same temperature as the outside The animal's breathing also slows down. It takes a long time for the animal to wake up and to move about.
My two exhibits are:
The Ground Squirrel:
Near the end of June, adult males go back into hibernation. Adult females do the same in July. But the young are active all summer.
The Ground Squirrel:
Near the end of June, adult males go back into hibernation. Adult females do the same in July. But the young are active all summer.
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In September, when there is less food to be found they go into hibernation. The ground squirrel storers(sp.) some food during hibernation, they wake up every 10 to 14 days and have a snack.
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When ground squirrels hibernate, they go into their dens to sleep through the cold of winter. They usually hibernate five to six months of the year. Their body temperatures drop so that they are only about one or two degrees higher than the temperature outside. In addition, their breathing and heart beats slow down. A ground squirrel’s heart will beat only a few times in a minute during hibernation. As I mentioned above, every week or two, the squirrels wake up for about 12-20 hours and then go into hibernation again. Some ground squirrels don't hibernate if they live in areas where the winters don't get too cold.
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Hibernation is the animal's way to adapt to things it can't change like weather or lack of food. When the weather gets warmer, the squirrels' body temperature rises just as fast as it went down in the beginning. Some squirrels have a summer hibernation called Estivation it happens when animals are too hot to deal with from the heat. For example, the ground squirrel has estivation in the Mojave Desert in California. It sleeps for about seven months a year when the air temperature gets above 98 degrees Fahrenheit. It goes to sleep from June to September and stays asleep until February. Older squirrels go to sleep before the younger ones because they are less active and don't need to store much food for hibernation. Males usually go into estivation first because they don't need to store as much food as the females do. Females need to feed their babies before their bodies store fat. After they come out of estivation, female ground squirrels have babies. There might be seven or eight babies .
To conclude, ground squirrels hibernate to adapt to the cold weather when food is scarces and when the weather is very hot.
Bats:
Some bats hibernate. For example, in the fall, large flocks of Big Brown Bats find shelter for the winter. The bats hang upside down and pull their wings and tails close to their bodies to keep warm. Their body temperature drops and they seem to be dead. Bats hibernate from October to April, they wake up once a month. Bats likes warm buildings to hibernate in and are able squeeze through a hole the size of a thumb.
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Bats are nocturnal, in addition,as I mentioned above, some bat species hibernate during the winter as well. Not all bats hibernate, but those that do, usually live at(in) high areas , where their food becomes scarce during cold months. During this period, they can often be found clustered on cave walls or ceilings, curled up like furry little balls.
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Hibernating can lst(sp.) over six months, however, these bats gain only a few grams of stored fat. They accomplish this by dropping their body temperature and slowing their metabolism to the point where heart rates slows to only 10 beats a minute. By the time spring comes, the bats lose about half of their body weight.
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Hibernating can lst(sp.) over six months, however, these bats gain only a few grams of stored fat. They accomplish this by dropping their body temperature and slowing their metabolism to the point where heart rates slows to only 10 beats a minute. By the time spring comes, the bats lose about half of their body weight.
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Altough hibernation has some benefits, it has side effects.
During hibernation, metabolic wastes aren't cleared .so a few species will hibernate less during the winter if their fat stores are enlarged. Most tropical bat species have food all the year and generally never need to take time off.
During hibernation, metabolic wastes aren't cleared .so a few species will hibernate less during the winter if their fat stores are enlarged. Most tropical bat species have food all the year and generally never need to take time off.
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Teacher's note:
Very good, Noa. Your work is well structured and well written, but your texts are too short. If you look in your textbook, p. 24, you'll find an example of how an appropriate text for your exhibits should look like. Please add some more information and don't forget to divide into, at least, 3 paragraphs.
Daphna.
Much much better, Noa. I think you did great and I loved your exhibits.
Daphna.
