Animals have three strategies for surviving winter: hibernation,
migration or adaptation.
Unless you're lucky enough to spend three months of the year
abroad, or you can sleep for three months, you have to
adapt to the cold weather.
If you're outside, what's the best way for you to keep warm? Try
these suggestions and find out! Make sure you're wearing warm,
outdoor clothes when you try these activities.
- Curl up in a ball like a sleeping fox. Make sure your ears and
hands are covered up!
- Grab a couple of friends and huddle up in a group like these
penguins.
- Find an open space and sit still for a minute. Then, find a
sheltered spot - try sheltering against a wall, or amongst some
trees. Sit still for a minute.
- Run around for a minute like this giddy spaniel.
Which kept you warm? Which made you the coldest? Did any make
you tired?
Running around makes you warm. It uses a lot of
energy though, which means you'll need to eat more food. This would
be a problem for animals in winter when there isn't a lot of food
around.
Sheltering from the wind and rain will keep you
warmer than standing outside in the open.
Huddling together with friends or curling up in
a ball will keep you warmer than standing or sitting.
If you were an animal outside in winter, how would you want to
keep warm?