Glucocorticoids regulate energy storage and release, particularly in response to environmental stressors, and they also influence learning and memory.Extensive laboratory research on stress hormones and learning has been done with rodents and humans, but little is known about the role of these hormones in free-living animals.I will describe the results of years of study on Beldings ground squirrels (Urocitellus beldingi), an ideal species given their annual cycles of hibernation and intense energy demands, and their need to learn survival behaviors.