Naked Mole Rat Bonanza
Now that I’ve opened my blog for public consumption, I feel like my first substantive post should be about something that everyone can relate to. That’s why I’ve decided to write about:
Naked mole rats.
Okay, so the mole rats above are furry, but they’re definitely still naked. And related to the naked, naked mole rats seen here:
Anyway, naked and furry mole rats are closely related and operate in eusocial societies, social hierarchies in which there are divisions of reproductive roles and organisms act cooperatively for the benefit of the group (e.g. bees). For naked/furry mole rats, this means a reproductive queen and a bunch of naked, naked workers.
So for the longest time, researchers have been absolutely befuddled by naked mole rat society. Why, you ask? I will tell you why!
Nake mole rat workers fall into two groups: frequent and infrequent. Frequent workers (~75% of the population) do 95% of the work: digging tunnels, caring for the queen, and collecting food. Makes sense – everyone needs to pitch in for the good of the colony. What confused researchers were the infrequent workers – mole rats that were fat, lazy, and work-averse. It didn’t make any sense – why would the colony support mole rats who were of no benefit to the colony?
And then the answer fell on their heads: rain. Although the lazy naked mole rats rarely worked, as soon as it rained they mobilized, digging furiously to prevent the flooding of their underground tunnels. And while their fat was primarily used as an energy reserve, in extreme cases the mole rats would use the girth of their bodies to block the tunnels. Ta-dah!! Amazing!
But before you run off and congratulate your nearest naked mole rat friend, keep this in mind: it only rains once or twice a year in the African desert.
ugly naked mole rat FTW!!!