Insect winter ecology

rdf:langString Insect winter ecology

rdf:langString Insect winter ecology describes the overwinter survival strategies of insects, which are in many respects more similar to those of plants than to many other animals, such as mammals and birds. Unlike those animals, which can generate their own heat internally (endothermic), insects must rely on external sources to provide their heat (ectothermic). Thus, insects persisting in winter weather must tolerate freezing or rely on other mechanisms to avoid freezing. Loss of enzymatic function and eventual freezing due to low temperatures daily threatens the livelihood of these organisms during winter. Not surprisingly, insects have evolved a number of strategies to deal with the rigors of winter temperatures in places where they would otherwise not survive. Two broad strategies for winter survival have evolved within Insecta as solutions to their inability to generate significant heat metabolically. Migration is a complete avoidance of the temperatures that pose a threat. An alternative to migration is weathering the cold temperatures present in its normal habitat. Insect cold tolerance is generally separated into two strategies, freeze avoidance and freeze tolerance.