8 facts about Ontario’s wildlife that hibernate to survive Canadian winter

Cecropia moths are a species that overwinter as cocoons. “What’s really important for a lot of native species in Ontario is that they have a cold period,” says Guidotti. “They need our cold winters in order to have a diapause period, and then emerge in the spring. Otherwise, they’ll emerge too soon and won’t be able to mate.”

Turtles often survive the winter by burying themselves in mud at the bottom of a wetland. But Smolarz says it’s not unusual to see a turtle moving around under the ice, particularly in the early winter or spring when ice is breaking or when the turtle is getting ready to come out.

For massasauga rattlesnakes, the approaching winter means it’s time to head to a mossy wetland for hibernation. Alanna Smolarz, Species at Risk Biologist with Magnetewan First Nation on eastern Georgian Bay, says the light and fluffy Spagnum found in peatlands forms mounds known as hummocks that act as “little rattlesnake homes.”“They can take advantage of already burrowed spots by small animals, but because the moss is so loose, they can follow the roots of trees down and hibernate in pockets that are below the frost line but above the water table. That’s a sweet spot the snakes can hibernate in.”

A lot of insects go into a dormant state over the winter, says Antonia Guidotti, Entomology Technician in the Department of Natural History at the Royal Ontario Museum. Insects overwinter in different life stages, depending on the species. “Butterflies, some of them overwinter as eggs, some of them as caterpillars, and some even as adults,” says Guidotti.

Despite all the Halloween decorations featuring bats, you’re unlikely to see a bat flying around on October 31. “Halloween time, most of our bats are busy getting ready for winter and have already gone into hibernation. It’s just too cold,” says Dr. Guy.

Ontario is home to eight species of bat. Three of those bats — the hoary bat, the eastern red bat, and the silver haired-bat — are migratory species that head south for the winter. “They still hibernate,” says Dr. Cylita Guy, who studied bats and zoonotic diseases for her PhD in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at the University of Toronto. “They just like to go where it’s a little bit warmer to do so.”

Prepping for a long winter of hibernation requires bats to chow down on loads of insects and “pack on the fat in late August and early fall,” says Dr. Guy. The layer of fat helps keep them warm and nourished through the winter months.

Five bat species stick around for Ontario’s winters, moving into cave systems to hibernate: the big brown bat, the little brown bat, the northern long-eared bat, the eastern small-footed bat, and the tri-coloured bat. Dr. Guy says that bats like the high humidity found in caves in the wintertime.