Which animal can sleep for up to three years at a time?
Garden snail
The answer was Garden snail. Here's the why, the decoys, and the source trail.
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Garden snails can enter a state of dormancy — a combination of hibernation and estivation — that allows them to sleep for up to three years when environmental conditions like temperature and humidity are unfavorable. They seal themselves inside their shells with a layer of dried mucus called an epiphragm to avoid drying out.
A good trivia question makes the wrong answers feel close. Here is the clean read on the set.
- Garden snail - correct answer.
- Brown bat - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
- Koala - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
- Three-toed sloth - a decoy; it may live near the same topic, but it does not answer this exact clue.
Garden snail is the one to remember. Garden snails can enter a state of dormancy — a combination of hibernation and estivation — that allows them to sleep for up to three years when environmental conditions like temperature and humidity are unfavorable. Snails have been found at altitudes above 18,000 feet in the Himalayas, making them some of the highest-dwelling land animals on Earth.
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Sources: Wikipedia — Hibernation