Animals That Hibernate In North Dakota (PHOTOS-GALLERY)

Animals that truly hibernate in North Dakota.

This is often a debated and controversial topic.  The actual definition of "hibernation" is as follows from the dictionary, "the condition or period of an animal or plant spending the winter in a dormant state."

If you go by that definition, all of the animals I'm going to present to you do indeed "hibernate".  However, other animal biologists or wildlife specialists will argue that these animals are in different states and are not hibernating.

How about snakes?  Do they hibernate?

For example, I've read in several places that rattlesnakes do not hibernate.  Instead, they are in a state known as "brumation."  According to Critter Control, the main difference between hibernation and brumation is that when an animal nears its time to hibernate, it eats more to gain enough fat to sustain it through the winter.

Rattlesnakes nearing brumation eat less because they do not want food in their system during brumation.  Snakes are lethargic but not totally asleep.  They will move around to get a drink of water and even sun themselves on a warm January day in North Dakota.  You might find them outside on a rock and may even hunt for small rodents.

The North Dakota Game & Fish however mentions in several articles that rattlesnakes do indeed hiberante.

Including in this article.  I'll let you argue this one out.  Is "brumation" a dormant state as in the definition for hibernation?  I tend to think so, so I'm going to include snakes in my gallery below.

Other animals like mice spend their winter below snow drifts on the ground (that's if they don't find some inside shelter like your house).  They're still active but only go above ground when necessary.  They're even busy mating and having babies.  I wish mice hibernated and went straight to hell.  Who's with me?

So, let's take a look at the animals that hibernate in North Dakota (there are way fewer than you would think).