Scientists wired sixteen black bears with brain sensors as part of a five-year research programme, and sampled recordings showed the animals spent nearly two-thirds of hibernation asleep, twice as much as in summer, even though their metabolism was running at a quarter speed

Scientists wired sixteen black bears with brain sensors as part of a five-year research programme, and sampled recordings showed the animals spent nearly two-thirds of hibernation asleep, twice as much as in summer, even though their metabolism was running at a quarter speed

Sixteen captive black bears fitted with implanted sensors that recorded their brain activity have given researchers the clearest picture yet of what actually happens inside a hibernating bear. Across a hibernation season, the bears spent close to 65 percent of their time asleep, roughly double the amount they slept during summer, even though their metabolism during hibernation had dropped to about a quarter of its normal rate. The study was carr…