this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2024
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How does cuddling keep them warm if they're cold blooded?
Edit: Thank you all for the new knowledge I'm good on more comment notifications though lol
It's not that cold blooded animals produce no heat, it's that they lose it faster than they make it. Plus a larger mass retains heat for longer.
Cold blooded animals still produce body heat, just like you feel warmer after exercise. They may not have any methods to keep their body temperature much higher than the surroundings, but wouldn't want to become too cold either.
Edit:
https://faunafacts.com/do-snakes-cuddle/
'Cold-blooded' is a term that's a little outdated, because of the confusion it creates around this very concept. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold-blooded has some information on it, and even says it's an informal term. Generally speaking, if we refer to something as cold-blooded, it's more reliant on or affected by the external temperature, while warm-blooded creatures will 'deal with' the external temperature.
A larger mass loses less thermal energy because it has less surface. So the snakes bask during the day and store up heat, and then huddle together to keep that heat around for longer. Same as a big rock would hold heat for longer than separate tiny pebbles would
square cube law is cool
It's warm. Jesus we just went over this!