IntroductionMammalian hibernators represent a unique model for the study of adaptation to changes in oxygen consumption (Carey et al., 2003;van Breukelen and Martin, 2015). Physiological parameters such as metabolism and oxygen supply are reduced during torpor (Storey, 2010;Yin et al., 2016). However, torpor is replaced by periods of intensive metabolic activity (arousal), which are characterized by quick warming of the organism (Carey et al., 2003;Storey, 2010). The great burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in mitochondrial respiration during the torpor-arousal cycles of bats may lead to the oxidative damage to sensitive tissues (Carey et al., 2003;Sanderson et al., 2013;Yin et al., 2016). The glutathione (GSH) and antioxidant defense enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase) reduce the effects of ROS (Galano and Alvarez-Idaboy, 2011; Conde-Pérezprina et al., 2012).Along with numerous studies on torpid ground squirrels (Sciuridae)