NAKED MOLE-RATS, LIVE WEBCAM
- Local Time
- Location: Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Washington, DC, United States
- Source: www.nationalzoo.si.edu
- Info: Live webcam showing naked mole-rats at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington. The naked mole rats have a special home which has 16 chambers and nearly 25 feet of winding tunnels.
Naked mole rats are coloured brown and pink. The skin is naked or hairless and wrinkled with very short, sensitive, fringe-like hairs on the body. The young possess dark spots on their skin, which typically fade away as they get older.
There is no difference in size between male amd female mole-rats. The queen and the breeding males are the largest individuals in the colony. Since naked mole-rats live predominantly underground, their eyes are much smaller than other rodents. They also have thick eyelids, which shut out light. They depend on other senses to survive in their dark world, such as hearing and touch.
In the wild, the tunnels of one colony can be up to 4kms long. Naked mole-rats live in colonies of up to 300 workers with a dominant female or queen and most of the workers being sterile, just like in ant or bee colonies. Only one queen mole-rat gets to reproduce, and she claims her throne through a battle for dominance. She can give birth to up to 30 pups per litter and convinces subordinate female subjects to babysit by feeding them her hormone laced droppings.
The biggest predator of the mole-rat is a snake and they will guard the tunnel entrance and fight to stop one from entering the burrow and harming the queen.
Video showing naked mole rats at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park:
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