... ground squirrels ( Andres-Mateos et al., 2013 ) found no evidence of altered muscle morphology across the hibernation season. As noted in our study, although a striking disuse atrophy does not manifest in this species, it still exhibits a muscle mass decline that is on pace with declining M b in early...

...Jenifer C. Utz; Stacy Nelson; Brendan J. O'Toole; Frank van Breukelen SUMMARY Prolonged inactivity leads to disuse atrophy, a loss of muscle and bone mass. Hibernating mammals are inactive for 6–9 months per year but must return to full activity immediately after completing hibernation...