Torpor

Torpor is a state of regulated hypothermiain an endothermlasting just a few hours. Animals that go through torpor include small birds like hummingbirdsand some small mammals such as bats. During the active part of their day, these animals maintain normal body temperature and activity levels, but their body temperature drops during a portion of the day (usually night) to conserve energy. Torpor is often used to help animals survive in a cold climate, since it allows the organism to save the amount of energy that would normally be used to maintain a high body temperature. Some animals such as groundhogs, chipmunks, and jumping miceenter this state of hibernation for the duration of the winter. Black bears, although often thought of as hibernators, do not truly enter a state of torpor. While their body temperatures lower along with respiration and heartbeat, they do not decrease as significantly as most animals in a state of torpor. Still, there is much debate about this within the scientific community, some feel that black bears are true hibernators that employ a more advanced form of hibernation.

Torpor is alternately used as a reference to any non-physiological state of inactivity.

Game References

In the role-playing gameVampire: The Masquerade, this refers to a vampire in a near-death state.

In the MMORPGEverQuest Torpor is a 60th level Shamanheal-over-time spell obtained originally from only the highest level creatures in the Kunarkexpansion. The spell significantly reduced the movement speed and attack speed of the player character it was cast on while simultaneously regenerating health points at an exceptional mana to health ratio over a short period of time (1200 hitpoints over 24 seconds for only 200 mana, unfocused). It has since been superseded by newer even more powerful healing spells, but in its heyday it was one of the most important spells in a Shaman's arsenal, especially when used in conjunction with the cannibalizespell to convert health back into mana during downtime.

See also

Hibernationde:Torpor

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torpor Wikipedia article Torpor.