Specialized protein helps these ground squirrels resist the cold
Being less sensitive to low temperatures may help the animals slip into hibernation
![thirteen-lined ground squirrel](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/121817_LH_hibernatingsquirrels_feat.jpg?fit=860%2C460&ssl=1)
GROUNDED When thirteen-lined ground squirrels hibernate, they lower their core body temperature to just a few degrees above freezing. And when awake, new research shows, the critters have a decreased sensitivity to cold compared with nonhibernating kin.
Gracheva Lab