'''Hibernation''' is a [[state]] of inactivity and metabolic [[depression]] in [[animals]], characterized by lower [[body]] temperature, slower [[breathing]], and lower metabolic rate. Hibernating animals [[conserve]] [[food]], especially during winter when food is short, tapping [[energy]] reserves, body fat, at a slow rate. It is the animal's slowed metabolic rate which leads to a reduction in body temperature and not the other way around. | '''Hibernation''' is a [[state]] of inactivity and metabolic [[depression]] in [[animals]], characterized by lower [[body]] temperature, slower [[breathing]], and lower metabolic rate. Hibernating animals [[conserve]] [[food]], especially during winter when food is short, tapping [[energy]] reserves, body fat, at a slow rate. It is the animal's slowed metabolic rate which leads to a reduction in body temperature and not the other way around. |