When temperatures climb and the air hangs heavy with heat, wildlife doesn’t reach for lemonade or the A/C remote. Instead, animals across the globe rely on remarkable adaptations—some elegant, others downright bizarre—to stay cool and alive in sweltering conditions.

Jackrabbits release body heat through their ears instead of sweating.

Cool Coats and Seasonal Shedding

Just as we swap sweaters for t-shirts, many mammals adjust their fur to cope with seasonal changes. White-tailed deer, for example, shed their thick winter coats in favor of shorter, lighter fur in the summer, allowing more efficient heat release, The Metro Parks Blog reports.

Similarly, bighorn sheep maintain a dual-layer fur system: an insulating undercoat that traps air and wicks moisture, paired with coarse guard hairs that resist wind and rain. According to Vail Daily, this natural layering mimics high-performance outdoor gear.

Hippos secrete a red fluid that acts like sunscreen, moisture barrier, and antibiotic.

Extreme Ear Air Conditioning

In hot environments, some animals wear their cooling system on their heads. Jackrabbits and elephants have oversized ears packed with blood vessels. When air flows over the ears, it cools the blood inside. The cooled blood then circulates through the body, reducing internal temperature. As Smithsonian Magazine reports, elephant ears can drop blood temperature by up to 14 degrees Fahrenheit.

White-tailed deer and rabbits use a similar mechanism. Air moving across their ears acts like a natural fan, dispersing body heat without the need for sweating, notes Metro Parks.

Ground squirrels spend most of the year underground to avoid summer heat.

Mud Baths and Dirt Naps

Not all cooling strategies are pretty. Pigs, bison, and elk regularly wallow in mud, not just to escape flies, but to shed heat. Mud evaporates slowly, offering long-lasting relief. Pigs have even evolved to rely on wallowing over sweating, according to Smithsonian Magazine.

Bison roll in dusty wallows to beat the heat while shedding fur and irritating insects. Elk coat themselves in wallow mud—mixed with urine and other fluids—which might double as a perfume and a summer spa, Cool Green Science reports.

Pigs roll in mud to create long-lasting evaporative cooling.

Built-in Sunscreen and DIY Sweat

Hippos can’t rely on shade alone. Their skin is sensitive to the sun, so they secrete a red-colored, mucus-like fluid that works as sunscreen, moisturizer, and antibiotic all in one. This unique protection earned it the nickname “blood sweat,” according to Cool Green Science.

For other species, thermoregulation happens through panting or evaporative cooling. Dogs and foxes pant, releasing heat with each breath. Birds use a variation called “gular fluttering,” a rapid vibration of the throat that cools moist tissues without expending much energy. As Metro Parks explains, herons and doves are often seen doing this in peak heat.

The Power of Poop and Pee

If sweat isn't available, animals get creative. Storks, vultures, and turkey vultures urinate or defecate on their legs. This process, known as urohidrosis, cools blood through evaporation. Despite sounding gross, it functions similarly to sweating, Smithsonian Magazine reports.

Bird poop is rich in water content. When it evaporates, it helps lower body temperature. Some species even appear to intentionally use this method to beat the heat, confirms The Washington Post.

Storks and vultures poop on their legs to cool off through evaporation.

Diving, Burrowing, and Sleeping Through It

Heat drives many animals underground or into water. Box turtles burrow into cool soil, and snakes hide beneath logs. Fish dive into deeper, cooler waters, often frustrating birds like ospreys and eagles that hunt from above, according to Metro Parks.

Some creatures take it further. Ground squirrels in Idaho enter a dormant state called estivation during the hottest months. They retreat underground in July and don’t reemerge until spring. The African lungfish takes this to an extreme. It forms a mucus cocoon in dry riverbeds and can survive for years without water. Cool Green Science reports that these fish have been revived after seven years of estivation.

Small Moves, Big Impacts

For reptiles like lizards, staying alive means finding precise pockets of shade. Research cited by Cool Green Science shows that lizards thrive in areas with scattered micro-shade rather than large, continuous shelter. As climate change reduces these microhabitats, some lizard populations face a troubling future.

Meanwhile, kangaroo rats beat the heat with efficient water retention. They don’t sweat or pant. Instead, they conserve water through specialized kidneys and nasal passages. They even reabsorb moisture from their own breath.

Birds vibrate their throats rapidly in a process called gular fluttering to stay cool.

Lessons in Resilience

From hippo sunscreen to squirrel slumber parties, the animal kingdom is packed with inventive ways to survive summer’s brutal heat. Their adaptations offer more than curiosity—they reveal the stakes of a warming world and the brilliant, bizarre lengths life goes to in order to endure.