Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — Hottest day, hottest week, hottest month, and probably the hottest year. The year 2023 recorded undesirable rates, with the exacerbation of the climate crisis.
Animals, like humans, are greatly affected by rising temperatures.
Some species develop tactics to combat the heat and keep themselves cool.
Here are four ways some animals beat the heat.
Photo of a squirrel lying on its stomach in Washington, DC. Credit: Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
The position lying on the stomach
In August, pictures of squirrels sleeping on their stomachs circulated in New York City, surprising people across the Internet.
But scientists have provided a logical explanation for this.
“The squirrel makes sure it has body contact with a cooler surface, often a piece of concrete or pavement in the shade,” biologist Charlotte Devitz told CNN.
She explained that this is a common way of regulating body temperature for squirrels, especially among the larger species.
“As the climate changes, the overall temperatures go up…and we see more of these spikes in heat, more droughts…I think it’s very likely that this behavior is more salient and more important for the squirrel.”
Shape change
A scientific study found that some warm-blooded animals develop different shapes of body organs to adapt to the hot climate.
A 2021 report indicated that some animals are developing larger beaks, legs, and ears to better regulate their body temperature.
One species of Australian parrot showed an increase in beak size of up to 10% since 1871, the largest shift seen in the review, with smaller increases recorded in the tails of shrews and the wings of bats.
“This means that animals are evolving, but not necessarily adapting to climate change,” Sarah Riding, a researcher at Deakin University in Australia and one of the review’s authors, told CNN.
Picture of a red kangaroo licking its arm, which helps lower its body temperature. Credit: Jami Tarris/Stone RF/Getty Images
Spitting and blowing mucous bubbles
Two Australian animals use their bodily fluids to beat the scorching temperatures of the outback.
The red kangaroo, the largest of the marsupials, licks its forearms, covering a network of vessels and capillaries with saliva.
As the layer of saliva evaporates, the body temperature drops.
Meanwhile, echidna mammals, also known as spiny anteaters, blow mucus bubbles to help combat overheating, according to a 2023 study.
Drop cooling is a method used by long-legged birds, such as the white stork. Credit: Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/dpa/picture alliance/Getty Images
Excrement cooling
Storks are among the birds known to secrete liquid droppings on their legs when their body temperature rises.
Eventually, the liquid containing both feces and urine evaporates, lowering body temperature, in a process similar to sweating in humans.
This method is known as “drop cooling,” and is most common among long-legged birds such as storks, condors, and boobies. This method requires regular access to drinking water, according to the 2021 report.
The report notes that understanding how animals regulate their body temperature can help us “improve our ability to make accurate predictions of the impact of climate change on biodiversity” and determine the vulnerability of certain species to heat stress.
2023-08-05 10:37:55
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