The ibex in winter

Winters in the mountains are harsh. Herbivorous animals can hardly find any food under the snow cover. And because temperatures sometimes drop far below zero, mammals have to expend a lot of energy to keep their body temperature high enough. So how do animals like the ibex cope with winter? It turns out that ibex lower their heart rate by about 60 percent in winter. Because the heartbeat is a good indicator of energy consumption, this means that their energy consumption is less than half of what it is in summer. Part of this energy savings is due to the fact that animals are less active in the winter, causing their body temperature to drop more at night than in the summer. But as researchers discovered, ibexes have another very simple energy-saving trick up their sleeve:

Namely, data showed that body temperature rises rapidly after sunrise, much faster than heart rate. Apparently, the animals bring their temperature back up to speed with the help of a morning sunbath. Thus, warming up requires hardly any energy. However, it takes time: According to the researchers, the ibexes move in the morning - still lethargic from the cold of the night - only from the sleeping place to the next sunny spot. But until the sun warms them up afterwards, it often takes until noon. Only then do the ibexes begin to move again.

According to the researchers, only reptiles and small mammals such as the dwarf maki - a prosimian - have been known to warm up to such an extent in the sun. The fact that large animals such as the ibex use this type of "energy generation" to such an extent is completely unexpected.

Experience ibexes in winter for yourself? Just take the Seetäli ski lift on your next ski day on the Parsenn and look to the right at the mountain peaks in the upper third of the lift...