Shower time: In the rainy season, impalas will gather in large herds. The dominant male will herd the females around a territorial area. But there’s always one that can’t resist looking at the camera
DENISHUOT f NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY f SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
Coping with the weather is a significant challenge for most land animals. The general pattern of seasonal change gives shape to their lives, but they also need adaptability to handle day-to-day shifts in weather conditions and extreme, unseasonable events.
Animals living in temperate areas typically time their breeding season for spring and summer, when temperatures are milder and food most abundant. Strategies to cope with cold temperate winters include changing the diet (many insect-eating birds switch to fruits and seeds) and hibernation (the preferred option for most insects, reptiles and amphibians, and some mammals). Some animals only visit temperate areas to breed, after which they travel to hotter regions for the winter.