![]() Skunks will even allow groundhogs and rabbits to remain in the same den (except when the females have young kits). Do raccoons hibernate?Īlthough they don’t hibernate, raccoons do hole up in dens during the bitterest days of winter and are able to sleep for long stretches of time – up to a month – without heading out into the elements. Striped skunks do not hibernate during the winter. Although they are usually solitary, skunks sometimes spend the winter in groups in their dens to keep warm. Skunks make their winter dens in ground burrows, in hollow logs, and under decks, porches, and buildings. While presently there are no skunks thought to be living in the wild in the UK, back in 2009 there were several reports of skunk sightings in the Forest of Dean area – more specifically – Gloucestershire. Skunks will eat insects, rodents, bird and turtle eggs, fruit, roadkills and garbage. Their typical litter size is 4 to 7 skunks. The skunk typically breeds from late February to March having young May through June. ![]() However, skunks remain inactive for short periods during winter mostly during the day. Torpor is a state of reduced body temperature and metabolic rate, like a ‘lethargic sleep’. ![]() Skunks do not fully hibernate, they enter a dormant state called “Torpor”. So, instead of hibernating, you can term chipmunks as ‘light sleepers’. Chipmunks retreat to their underground burrows and enter a hibernation type state but wake up every few days to eat and defecate. Are chipmunks true hibernators?Ĭhipmunks (members of the squirrel family) are not true hibernators but they do enter states of torpor. Instead, skunks enter a state of torpor – a sort of deep sleep from which they awake from time to time. Settled into its winter home, the striped skunk becomes dormant, but does not enter a full state of hibernation. A woodchuck’s heart rate goes from 80 beats a minute when active to 4 or 5 beats a minute when in hibernation. Woodchucks, ground squirrels and bats are “true” hibernators. The “true” hibernators sleep so deeply that they are almost impossible to wake up. Obligate hibernators include many species of ground squirrels, other rodents, mouse lemurs, European hedgehogs and other insectivores, monotremes, and marsupials. ![]() Obligate hibernators are animals that spontaneously, and annually, enter hibernation regardless of ambient temperature and access to food. What is an animal that hibernates called? and their body functions do not change as much. as the skunk and racoon are not considered true hibernators, as they wake up in winter to feed. Mouse, little brown bat, eastern chipmunk, and several ground squirrels. Which of the following is not a true hibernating animal? To stay warm, skunks sometimes share dens with more than a dozen others. They slow down considerably in cold temperatures, but do not hibernate. Do skunks hibernate yes or no?ĭuring the winter and early cool spring, skunks come out at almost any time of day, especially after a heavy snowfall or cold snap. Three are “true hibernators,” meaning they enter into a state of metabolic depression and inactivity, characterized by lower metabolic rate, slower breathing and lower body tem- perature. The skunk is one of New Hampshire’s seven wildlife spe- cies that sleep the winter away. 54 What triggers groundhog hibernation? Are striped skunks true hibernators?
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