Written By - Doug Leier - 01/17/2008
Link to Original Article here

Humans cope with winter in a number of ways, and looking out at the wildlife world it's interesting to compare our mechanisms with those of other creatures and critters.

Take for instance what we commonly call snow birds, or those folks who spend spring, summer and fall in our midst, but choose to winter in other parts of the country where it is warmer and snow is much less likely.

The “snow bird” phenomenon is really not all that different from waterfowl or other bird species that arrive in spring, nest, raise their young and then fly south each year. These long-distance migrations are probably the most familiar examples of how some animals and people endure winter months.

While we tend to associate migration with birds, seasonal movements of mammals also occur, though typically on a less grand scale. In the Northern Plains, pronghorn antelope historically moved up to a few hundred miles to the south or west to escape severe winter conditions.