Hibernation and estivation are similar in that the animal's metabolism slows down and the dormant animal breathes so slowly that it may appear to be dead. The place an animal chooses to spend the winter is called a hibernaculum ('a shelter occupied during the winter by a dormant animal'). Other related words are hibernal ('of or relating to, or occurring in winter') and estival ('of or relating to the summer') the summer solstice can be referred to as the estival solstice. Hibernate comes from the Latin verb hībernāre, which means 'to pass the winter.' Similarly, estivate is derived from the Latin verb aestīvāre, meaning 'to spend the summer.' The Latin verbs ultimately come from the words that mean 'of winter' or 'wintry' and 'of the summer,' respectively. Mark Woolhouse, Natural History, March 1989 Hibernating for Summer Snails combat desiccationīy estivating, that, is burrowing into the mud and sealing up the shell with mucus until conditions improve. Periodic droughts are common here, and stretches of the Karombe may dry up for several months. Sasha Landauer, Point Reyes Light, 11 July 2018īut the dry season may present another hazard: drought. They assemble on rocky summits above the tree line and estivate-a summer version of hibernation-to conserve energy, living off the fat from their caterpillar phase. Certain animals are indeed wired to estivate rather than hibernate.īeginning in August, the new generation of butterflies begin to migrate south toward the highest elevations. It turns out that there is a comparable term for creatures that enter a similar stage during the summer. When bears hibernate, their metabolism slows down and their body temperature lowers, and they enter a state of dormancy.

The warm weather of summer usually invites opportunity for travel, working and playing outside, and social get-togethers. In this regard, we might relate to bears.

Humans can’t spend the entire winter sleeping, but the harshness of winter does make it tempting to remain indoors for prolonged periods, which is a kind of hibernation in itself.

Hibernate meaning