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One theory is: sleep helps animals adapt to their environment, it aids in learning. Learning occurs in healthy animals (including humans) during their entire lifetime, though older animals and humans require less sleep than younger ones (perhaps the rate of learning drops off a bit as we/they get older). It's also theorized that sleep has a restorative function, meaning that the body repairs itself during sleep from the wear and tear of living and the work of surviving during the day. Sleep could have developed because of animals' need to protect themselves. As you know, some animals (including cows) search for water and food during the day because finding it is easier when the sun is out, and it can be seen. After dark, these animals need to save energy, avoid being caught by predators, and avoid tripping or falling from something they can't see. You might like to compare which animals sleep the most and which, the least (see link). One can generalize that animals that serve as food for other animals sleep the least.

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16y ago

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