Social thermoregulation and torpor in the Siberian hamster.

Social thermoregulation and huddling bring about energy benefits to animals sharing a nest because of the smaller surface-to-volume ratio of a huddle and the higher local temperature in the nest. We tested whether living in groups and huddling affect daily torpor, metabolic rate and seasonal changes in the body mass of a small heterothermic rodent, the Siberian hamster (Phodopus sungorus), housed under semi-natural conditions both singly and in groups of four litter-mates. We predicted that in hamsters housed in groups: (1) synchronized torpor bouts would be longer and deeper than non-synchronized ones but shallower than in solitary hamsters, (2) seasonal variations in metabolic rate would be lower than in solitary hamsters, and (3) the winter decrease in body mass would be smaller in grouped than in singly housed hamsters.