3.5.1 Final arousal

Emergence can be viewed as the final step in the series of periodic arousals. Instead of re-entering hibernation, the animal maintains the euthermic condition. The cue for maintaining this final arousal is probably not temperature, as some species emerge when T _a is well below zero. It is also difficult to see how arousal could be affected by daylength, since the hibernating animal is usually underground in a cavity or a burrow. Perhaps fat or food stores reach a minimum level or the timing of the final arousal is pre-programmed into the animal's activity cycle.