Can vampires hibernate like bears?
Stephen H., Eureka, California A: Yes, although we call it a “dormancy” rather than hibernation. A vampire facing a paucity of humans to feed upon will find a safe, dark place and construct a lair. Abandoned mines and caves are high on the list of potential lair sites, although enterprising vampires have been known to simply dig a hole in a hill and cover it with a large rock. Once safely esconsed inside its lair, the vampire will fall into a deep sleep during which its bodily functions shut down. The outer limits of the vampire dormancy phase have yet to be discovered, although FVZA scientists in the 1940s and 1950s observed vampires remaining in the dormant phase for over 10 years. The longer a vampire is dormant, the more its appearance changes. Its skin becomes dry and withered and its eyes sink further into its skull. But as always with vampires, appearances can be deceiving. While a bear will lumber groggily out of its hibernation den, a vampire can snap out of dormancy in an ins
