Don’t hibernate—celebrate! Green ways to enjoy the holiday season

American alligators live in and around the water bodies of NASA’s Johnson Space Center. As the cold winter weather comes to Houston, these local alligators will face a unique challenge. Alligators, like all reptiles, are ectothermic. Ectothermic animals depend on external sources of heat to regulate their body temperature. Unable to warm themselves and unable to migrate to warmer climates, the alligators must ride out the cold season. To cope with falling temperatures, alligators will become far less active—and even stop eating. Throughout winter, alligators will find a place to hide and enter brumation, a state similar to hibernation in mammals. Alligators will remain hidden in this semi-dormant state until warm spring weather allows them to once again warm themselves. 

To ride out the cold season, read this month’s sustainability opportunities. With lots of holiday parties to keep you warm, remember to look for bio-based disposable cutlery and tableware for your gatherings, and read how to keep your tree picking ever-green.   

Image Credit: NASA/Lauren Harnett

Matt Strausser

NASA Johnson Space Center