Gut microbes help hibernating ground squirrels emerge strong and healthy in spring
- Written by Hannah V. Carey, Professor Emeritus of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Ground squirrels spend the end of summer gorging on food, preparing for hibernation. They need to store a lot of energy as fat, which becomes their primary fuel source underground in their hibernation burrows all winter long.
While hibernating, ground...