Ever since I saw one in a Chicago zoo, I've loved naked mole rats. Then in Cape Town I had a conservationist friend who took me to see them in real life. Studied for a range of reasons their tunnel life was recreated in plastic tubing on the walls of the zoology building and watching them run backwards through these tunnels and clambour all over each other in their day-to-day business made me really happy. It's probably odd to like something so traditionally unattractive but Kimpossible has one so they can't be all bad. I mean if Disney is willing to include them...right?
They live in the drier parts of Eastern Africa (Kenya, Ethiopia, Somailia - so were unlikely to see them, boo) in tunnels underground. These conditions are harsh to say the least but the mole rat is more than equipped with:
- lack of pain sensation in its skin
- low metabolism
- its blood has a very strong affinity for oxygen, increasing the efficiency of oxygen uptake
But the reason they are being studied and what makes them particularly intriguing is their longevity. It's the longest living rodent and can live up to 28 years because it's "living its life in pulses" ( Sciencedaily.com. 2007-10-16). That is they can substantially reduce their metabolism during hard times which is sort of like rodent cryogenics, but not quite. This ability is so effective that scientists are trying to sequence mole rat genes to figure out how to make us live forever...sort of.
Thanks to the wonderful wiki for all this info. To learn more about naked mole rats - because there is lots to know click here.
Whole Naked Mole Rat gallery. Epic.
Photos: wikia.com, arkive.org & flickr.com
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