Even in tropical Madagascar there are animals that hibernate

Many animals, including mammals, are trying to save their strength in the event of adverse environmental conditions, whether it be impending winter, drought, or the period of non-feed. One of such ways to overcome the hardships of life is hibernation, into which animals fall. During this condition, they have a slowdown in all physiological processes, their body temperature decreases, and their heart rate and respiration decrease. The most common such adaptation mechanisms in animals of the temperate zone.

But, as scientists recently found out, even in the tropics live animals that hibernate. These heat-loving dormouse are Madagascar lemurs. The island of Madagascar is located on the border of tropical and subequatorial climate. Air temperatures here are around the year 20 degrees Celsius, with a slight decrease in winter. The exception is the highlands of the eastern part of the island, where the climate is cooler, in winter temperatures are around + 5-10 degrees. But the periods of the year also differ in the amount of precipitation. In winter, there is a dry season, there is practically no rain, the trees take off leaves, and it’s not easy to find food. Here the lemurs decided that it is better to spend time in a sweet dream than in the exhausting search for food and water.

More than 100 species of lemurs live in Madagascar; these are endemic to the island and are not found anywhere else on the planet. But far from all lemur-like representatives fall into hibernation. Three species are reliably known: the thick-tailed dwarf lemur, the dwarf lemur Crossley and the Siberian lemur. The first of them is most studied, which got its name due to the fact that it has fat reserves even on its tail. This is a small plump animal weighing about 200 grams. He has fluffy gray fur, and in his diverse diet there are fruits, leaves and small insects, in a word, everything that can be found. These animals with the advent of autumn burrow into fallen leaves on the ground, curl up in a ball and spend in a serene dream from three to seven months. Like other mammals, they rarely breathe in a dream, and their body temperature drops so much that you might think that they are dead.

Moreover, this is the only case of hibernation recorded among representatives of primates, which causes great interest among physiologists. After all, this is the group of mammals closest to humans, and if they can thus regulate their condition, then perhaps a person is able to master such technologies? Human anabiosis is interesting from the point of view of space exploration. After all, being in a state close to hibernation, a person can spend many years on the way to Mars. Perhaps it is the dear Madagascar lemurs that will be the creatures that will make humanity's dream a reality.