THREE THINGS THAT TELL MY BODY TO GET OUT OF MY BURROW IN THE SPRING It is impossible to predict exactly when I or other desert tortoises will wake from hibernation and come out of our burrows for the first time near the beginning of spring. Three things seem to be working to remind us when to emerge. 1. Temperature. Being reptiles, we respond quite quickly to temperature changes. As the weather becomes warmer with the approach of spring we move out of our cold burrows to bask in the sun. 2. Amount of daylight each day. Beginning the first day of winter, the amount of daylight increases each day. Even though we are asleep, deep in our burrows, by March or April this message starts to get through. 3. Our internal “clock”. Each of us has an individual internal “clock”. It seems that this “clock” may “tell” us when it is time to emerge regardless of the weather or the amount of daylight. So, there seem to be three things that may affect emergence for the first time each spring. This makes the Mojave Max Emergence Contest (link to rules/entry form) full of suspense and surprise. Several tortoises may gather in the same location.