Crepuscular animal - wikipedia Crepuscular animal For the atmospheric optical effect, see crepuscular rays. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( November 2016 ) Look up crepuscular animal in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. An adult firefly ( Photuris lucicrescens ) or `` lightning bug '' -- a crepuscular beetle Crepuscular animals are those that are active primarily during twilight ( that is, the periods of dawn and dusk ). This is distinguished from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, where an animal is active during the hours of daylight or the hours of darkness, respectively. The term is not precise, however, as some crepuscular animals may also be active on a moonlit night or during an overcast day. The term matutinal is used for animals that are active only before sunrise, and vespertine for those active only after sunset. The time of day an animal is active depends on a number of factors. Predators need to link their activities to times of day at which their prey is available, and prey try to avoid the times when their principal predators are at large. The temperature at midday may be too high or at night too low. Some creatures may adjust their activities depending on local competition. Therefore, for many varied reasons, crepuscular activity may best meet an animal 's requirements by compromise. Contents 1 Etymology and usage 2 Adaptive relevance 3 Occurrence of crepuscular behaviour 4 See also 5 References Etymology and usage The word crepuscular derives from the Latin crepusculum ( `` twilight '' ). Its sense accordingly differs from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, which respectively peak during hours of daylight and darkness. The distinction is not absolute however, because crepuscular animals may also be active on a bright moonlit night or on a dull day. Some animals casually described as nocturnal are in fact crepuscular. Special classes of crepuscular behaviour include matutinal ( or `` matinal '' ) and vespertine, denoting species active only in the dawn or only in the dusk, respectively. Those that are active during both morning and evening twilight are said to have a bimodal activity pattern. Adaptive relevance Fireflies at twilight, long exposure The various patterns of activity are thought to be mainly antipredator adaptations, though some could equally well be predatory adaptations. Many predators forage most intensively at night, whereas others are active at midday and see best in full sun. Thus, the crepuscular habit may both reduce predation pressure, thereby increasing the crepuscular populations, and in consequence offer better foraging opportunities to predators that increasingly focus their attention on crepuscular prey until a new balance is struck. Such shifting states of balance are often found in ecology. Some predatory species adjust their habits in response to competition from other predators. For example, the subspecies of short - eared owl that lives on the Galápagos Islands is normally active during the day, but on islands like Santa Cruz that are home to the Galapagos hawk, the owl is crepuscular. Apart from the relevance to predation, crepuscular activity in hot regions also may be the most effective way of avoiding heat stress while capitalizing on available light. Occurrence of crepuscular behaviour Ocelots are active at night, especially during dawn and dusk. Many familiar mammal species are crepuscular, including some bats, hamsters, housecats, stray dogs, rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs and rats. Other crepuscular mammals include jaguars, ocelots, bobcats, strepsirrhines, red pandas, bears, deer, moose, sitatunga, capybaras, chinchillas, the common mouse, skunks, Australian wombats, wallabies, quolls, possums and marsupial gliders, tenrecs, spotted hyenas, and African wild dogs. Snakes and lizards, especially those in desert environments, may be crepuscular. Crepuscular birds include the common nighthawk, barn owl, owlet - nightjar, chimney swift, American woodcock, spotted crake, and white - breasted waterhen. Many moths, beetles, flies, and other insects are crepuscular and vespertine. See also Cathemeral Crypsis Diurnality Nocturnality References Jump up ^ `` Glossary ''. North American Mammals. Smithsonian -- National Museum of Natural History. Retrieved July 16, 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` Crepuscular ''. Macmillan Science Library : Animal Sciences. Macmillan Reference USA. 2001 -- 2006. Retrieved 2011 - 07 - 11. Jump up ^ Winn, Philip ( 2001 ). Dictionary of Biological Psychology. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 0 - 415 - 13606 - 7. Jump up ^ Frederick, Prince ( 2006 - 04 - 15 ). `` Night herons in the day ! ''. Metro Plus Chennai. The Hindu. Retrieved 15 January 2012. Jump up ^ Merck, John. `` The community of terrestrial animals ''. Field Studies II : The Natural History of the Galápagos Islands. University of Maryland Department of Geology. Retrieved 15 January 2012. Jump up ^ The Ecology of Stray Dogs : A Study of Free - Ranging Urban Animals -- Alan M. Beck -- Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2012 - 04 - 13. Jump up ^ Williams, David L. ( 2012 ). Ophthalmology of Exotic Pets. John Wiley & Sons. p. 73. Retrieved 2017 - 06 - 23. Jump up ^ Williams, David L. ( 2012 ). Ophthalmology of Exotic Pets. John Wiley & Sons. p. 88. Retrieved 2017 - 06 - 23. Jump up ^ Schaul, Jordan Carlton ( April 6, 2011 ). `` The Kodiak Cubs Meet Their Neighbors, The American Black Bears ''. National Geographic Voices. National Geographic Society. Retrieved July 15, 2017. Jump up ^ `` White - Tailed Deer ''. Animals. National Geographic Partners, LLC. Retrieved July 15, 2017. Jump up ^ Audubon, John J. ( 1827 -- 1838 ). `` Plate 171 : Barn Owl ''. Birds of America. Jump up ^ Boyes, Steve ( October 7, 2012 ). `` Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs of the Week # 23 ''. National Geographic Voices. National Geographic Society. Retrieved July 15, 2017. hide Biological rhythms Internal rhythms Circadian rhythm Infradian rhythm Ultradian rhythm Lunar rhythm Annual rhythm External cycles Diurnality Diurnal cycle Nocturnality Cathemeral Crepuscular Matutinal Vespertine Seasonality Photoperiodism Vernalization Fields Behavioural ecology Chronobiology Ethology See also Chronotype Diel vertical migration Light pollution Solunar theory Parts of the day Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Crepuscular_animal&oldid=832498475 '' Categories : Ethology Night Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from November 2016 All articles needing additional references Talk Contents About Wikipedia বাংলা Català Deutsch Esperanto فارسی 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska עברית മലയാളം Bahasa Melayu Nederlands 日本 語 Português اردو 6 more Edit links This page was last edited on 26 March 2018, at 11 : 24 ( UTC ). 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Question: word for animals awake at dawn and dusk
Answer: Crepuscular