Yellow-Bellied Marmot Sleeping Habits Offer Clues to Longevity

Every April, in the mountainous forests of Colorado, a fuzzy creature with a belly the color of buttered toast emerges from its snow-covered burrow. For the past eight months, the yellow-bellied marmot has been hibernating, existing in suspended animation to survive the bitterly cold winter. Although months have passed, the marmot is the same age — biologically speaking — as when it entered its den in early fall, a new study has found.

Scientists have long known that hibernation has anti-aging effects that go way beyond your typical beauty sleep. Turkish hamsters that spend more time dormant tend to live longer. Briefer bouts of hibernation among black bears are associated with the disintegration of telomeres, the protective caps on the ends of our chromosomes that dwindle with age.