Aestivation also aestivate. Although relatively uncommon, a small number of mammals aestivate. Animal physiologist Kathrin Dausmann of Philipps University of Marburg, Germany, and coworkers presented evidence in a 2004 edition of "Nature" that the Malagasy fat-tailed dwarf lemur hibernates or aestivates in a small tree hole for seven months of the year. According to the Oakland Zoo in California, East African hedgehogs are thought to aestivate during the dry season. Aestivation Aestivation or æstivation (from , summer, but also spelled estivation in American English) is a state of animal dormancy, similar to hibernation, characterized by inactivity and a lowered metabolic rate,
Hibernation number of reasons, such as saving the lives of seriously ill or injured people by temporarily putting them in a state of hibernation until treatment can be given. Hibernation Hibernation is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression in endotherms. Hibernation refers to a season of heterothermy characterized by low body temperature, slow breathing and heart rate, and low metabolic rate. It is most commonly observed during the winter months. Although traditionally reserved for "deep" hibernators such as rodents, the term has been redefined to include animals such as bears and is now applied based on active metabolic suppression rather