(photo by US Fish & Wildlife Service)
Arctic Ground Squirrel; Spennophilus parryii kennicottii
Arctic ground squirrels are the northern-most hibernators. Their hibernation can last for 8 months a year.
While living through harsh environmental conditions including high winds, snow and darkness, they also have to survive a range of predators. Common predators to the ground squirrel are ravens, long-tailed jaegers, owls, foxes and wolverines.
C. Loren Buck, Brian M. Barnes, Annual Cycle of Body Composition and Hibernation in Free-Living Arctic Ground Squirrels, Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 80, Issue 2, 20 May 1999, Pages 430–442, https://doi.org/10.2307/1383291