mole-rat
Hairless underground gnawer
A mole-rat is a burrowing rodent with small eyes, reduced or absent ears, and prominent teeth adapted for digging.
African naked mole-rats are notable for their hairless, wrinkled appearance and unusual social structure—they live in colonies with a single breeding queen, like social insects.
The naked mole-rat can live for decades, far longer than other rodents its size.
Front cutting teeth
- gnawingPersistent biting action
- whiskersFacial sensory hairs
- furAnimal body hair
- teethEnamel-covered chewing structures
burrow · colony · naked · hairless · wrinkled · pink · herbivore · tubers
Enclosed underground route
- excavateRemove earth systematically
- digUnearth by shoveling
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
- chamberEnclosed room or cavity
galleries · burrow · soil · claws · nesting · tunneler · subterranean · network
Dependent territorial settlement
- queenMost powerful chess piece
- workersPeople doing jobs
- hierarchyRanked authority structure
- casteInherited social division
cooperation · kinship · breeding · alloparenting · division of labor · dominance · pheromones · grooming
Facility for scientific investigation
- longevityDuration of existence
- agingGrowing older over time
- hypoxiaInsufficient tissue oxygenation
- metabolismCellular nutrient conversion
genetics · specimen · study · telomeres · senescence · oxygen deprivation · thermoregulation
incisors
Front cutting teeth
teeth · burrow · colony · naked · hairless · wrinkled · pink · herbivore · tubers · roots
tunnel
Enclosed underground route
- excavateRemove earth systematically
- digUnearth by shoveling
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
chamber · galleries · burrow · soil · claws · nesting · tunneler · subterranean · network · passages
colony
Dependent territorial settlement
caste · cooperation · kinship · breeding · alloparenting · division of labor · dominance · pheromones · grooming · communication
laboratory
Facility for scientific investigation
metabolism · genetics · specimen · study · telomeres · senescence · oxygen deprivation · thermoregulation