Heat: v8

FAT HELPS THERMOREGULATION: Water at the North and South poles is cold, sometimes dipping to 28º F. The Arctic waters are so cold that they can kill a man in less than a minute. 

FAT HELPS THERMOREGULATION: Thanks to a three-foot thick layer of special insulating fat that surrounds Arctic whales like the migrating humpback whale, swimming in the freezing waters is like a swimming in toasty bathtub to them.

FAT HELPS THERMOREGULATION: The polar bear can weigh up to 1500 pounds. Their incredible strength allows them to make a 100-mile swim. A polar bear has a layer of blubber providing him a warm blanket of protection when swimming in the frigid waters.

FAT HELPS THERMOREGULATION: Because of their blubber layer, polar bears can’t run long distances. They have fast bursts, but quickly overheat because of so much insulation. If they had to hunt for food only by running, they’d starve because they cannot run far.

TOUCAN COOLING: Elephants and desert jackrabbits are able to pump blood into their large feet. The cooler air around their feet can draw out heat from the blood.

TOUCAN COOLING: Dogs can cool off by panting. When they pant, they push the hot air out of their lungs. Why? Because billions of capillaries in their lungs enlarge and the heat from their blood can be breathed out. Their tongue is a thermo-regulator, also. The longer it sticks out, the more they’re using it to cool the blood moving through it by evaporative cooling.

TOUCAN COOLING: The amazing toucan has one of the most unique methods of thermoregulation. Scientists discovered it using thermographic cameras like the ones the military uses to detect infrared light. They discovered that the toucan stays cool by using their large bills. 

TOUCAN COOLING: Toucans have many blood vessels that run throughout their claws. When they start getting hot, the blood vessels are expanded in their claws by their brain and the air around the claws draws heat out of the blood like a magnet. 

TOUCAN COOLING: The toucan’s beak cooling works really well in the jungles when the air is often too moist to use evaporative cooling

TOUCAN COOLING: In order to minimize heat loss, toucans lay their beaks on their backs and cover it with their feathers to keep the heat in the beak. This keeps them warm. These behaviors are pre-wired by their DNA.