Week of June 14, 2026 – June 20, 2026
by Amelia Gross, Environmental Educator
If you are anything like me, the second the weather warms up, spending as much time outside as possible becomes a top priority. Maybe you’ve been taking more walks or enjoying meals outside, while remembering what it feels like to not need multiple layers of clothing. I have been lucky enough to spend several days a week exploring with students now that field trip season is in full swing here at Baltimore Woods, soaking in the late spring and early summer sun.
In mid-May, temperatures quickly jumped from cool 50 degree days to high 80’s in the span of a few days. By the end of a morning field trip, I found myself sweatier and more fatigued than expected – as if I had climbed a very steep mountain, rather than teaching kids for an exciting few hours. Perhaps, you also noticed yourself feeling hotter and sweatier than anticipated during those early warm days, but don’t worry it is normal. It takes a week or two for our bodies to acclimatize to the heat and most effectively produce sweat as a cooling mechanism.
Sweat, while a nuisance, is your body performing an incredibly important function to maintain that perfect 98.6 °F internal temperature. In response to higher than normal temperatures, our brain triggers some of the millions of glands to produce sweat that moves through pores to sit on our skin. When the liquid evaporates, it turns to vapor that absorbs the heat, thus cooling us down. This thermoregulation process may seem simple and mundane, but it is pretty rare across the animal kingdom.
The vast majority of animals are ecotherms (also known as cold-blooded), relying solely on their environment to maintain the appropriate temperature. Mammals, birds, and a few outlying species that can regulate their own temperature account for a marginal percentage of all animals. Within this narrowed down set of species, very few sweat, but several animals utilize the same evaporative heat loss system to maintain homeostasis.
Our fellow endotherms tend to be furry, feathery or hairy, so producing sweat that sits on their skin is not as effective for them. They have other ways liquid can be evaporated from their body, some of which we are familiar with from having pets at home. When dogs and cats pant, moisture is evaporated internally, from their mouth, lungs and tongue, to cool down. For pigs, hippos, and other similar animals rolling around in the mud is the method to wet their skin for evaporation. Birds take this one step further (or grosser), as they may poop on their legs to achieve the same goal.
While sweating isn’t always pleasant, it is surely better than the alternative options for preventing overheating. So as we enter what is sure to be a warm and sweaty summer, perhaps knowing that you could be rolling in the mud or relying on shade alone to stay cool can be of comfort.