the.com/brumation
reptilian winter mode where lizards basically download their personality and refuse to update for months
means Brumation is the reptile-and-amphibian version of winter dormancy, a sluggish cold-weather slowdown where metabolism drops and the animal goes mostly still but still occasionally wakes to drink.
from From Latin 'bruma,' meaning winter (and the winter solstice — the year's shortest day), itself thought to derive from 'brevis,' short. The term was coined in the 20th century specifically to distinguish cold-blooded dormancy from true mammalian hibernation, since reptiles don't sleep the season away the way bears do — they just power down.
- not sleep
- Reptiles stay awake but slow their metabolism drastically
- breath holding
- Some turtles breathe through their butts underwater
- trigger
- Falling temperatures and shorter days cue the shutdown
- survival hack
- Hearts can slow to a few beats per minute
- wake breaks
- Animals may rouse occasionally to drink water
bearded dragon brumation — central australian reptiles enter 2-3 month dormancy in winter, stopping eating and activity
tortoise brumation burrow — desert tortoises in the mojave bury themselves for 6+ months without food or water
snake brumation hibernacula — garter snakes in canada gather by thousands in underground dens like narcisse wildlife management area