Humans aren’t the only animals that gather to hunker down together at Christmas

Just as humans have historically gathered during winter, many animals do the same. Animals may not be exchanging presents or decorating their nests and dens but a lot of species become more social in winter – even ones that are normally solitary.

Animals have more to worry about this time of year than bickering relatives or the last date for Christmas post. Winter poses severe challenges for wildlife, from freezing temperatures to a scarcity of food. One of the main reasons animals aggregate during the winter is to keep warm. Some species avoid these harsh conditions by migrating to warmer areas, such as cuckoos in the UK overwintering in central Africa. Others grow insulating coats (like mountain hares in the Scottish highlands), or develop a thick layer of blubber (grey seals and harbour porpoises for example) to keep the cold at bay.

But some animals come together instead. Brandt’s voles inhabit the grasslands and steppe of inner Mongolian, where winter temperatures drop as low as -30 °C and strong winds and blizzards are frequent.

During the summer months, the voles are largely solitary. However, throughout the long, harsh winters, they form small huddling groups of around four in the nesting chambers of their underground burrows to share body heat. Huddling conserves energy by reducing resting metabolic rate by up to 37% and limits heat loss.

Arctic hares live in one of the harshest environments on Earth in northern Canada where the long winters last up to nine months and temperatures can drop to -40°C. During this time, they abandon their solitary summer habits and

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