6th Grade · Science · Activity · shared by Luke Morgan
Get a free 6th Grade Science activity exploring how Little Brown Bats use biometric changes for winter survival and energy conservation.
Case Study: The Little Brown Bat’s Winter Survival Strategy
Little Brown Bats encounter a difficult situation when chilly winter weather arrives and their primary food supply, flying bugs, vanishes completely. To survive months without eating, these small furry animals enter a deep state of rest to preserve their limited internal fuel. During the summer, an active bat maintains a fast biological process to hunt, with a heart rate of 210 beats per minute and a warm body temperature of 40°C. However, staying this active in winter would quickly exhaust their energy because they must eat 1,000 bugs every hour to stay powered. To fix this, bats rely on specialized brown fat reserves that they store up during the autumn months. When they slumber deeply, their heart rate drops to only 8 beats per minute, and their body temperature falls to a chilly 3°C. This biological decrease allows them to survive on zero outside food for the entire season. Human researchers and cave travelers are careful not to bother these animals because arising just once costs a bat 60 days of stored energy. If a bat is startled into an active state too often, it will use up its brown fat and starve before the spring bugs return.
📋 Student Worksheet: Case Study Analysis
Name: _________________________ Date: _____________
📖 CASE OVERVIEW
Case Title: The Little Brown Bat: Metabolism and Winter Survival
Topic/Subject: Biological Energy Conservation and Biometrics
🔑 Key Facts Box:
Active bats have a heart rate of 210 bpm, while hibernating bats drop to 8 bpm.
A bat's body temperature falls from 40°C when active to 3°C during hibernation.
Active bats require 1,000 insects per hour, but hibernating bats eat 0 insects.
Waking up from hibernation a single time uses up 60 days worth of stored energy.
1. 🔍 CENTRAL FOCUS