Ordinary mole rat: description and photo

An ordinary mole rider is completely devoid of vision, instead he has tactile hairs, well-developed sense of smell and hearing. This animal is enough for a normal life, during which he almost never sees sunlight. For many land owners, the mole rat has become a real punishment, because he is able to dig up the entire landing area and even affect the stability of the buildings located there.

Few people saw ordinary mole rats live because of their way of life. They are rarely selected to the surface, and their activity increases with the onset of darkness. So some idea about the size and lifestyle of the animal is accounted for only by the traces left by it. To help those who want to learn how the ordinary mole rides and lives, photos and stories of biologists.

Description of the mole rat

The maximum length of these rodents is 32 cm and their weight is 700 g. They have an elongated body in the form of a cylinder, a short neck, paws and a tail, and a head flattened at the top. The ears of the animals are barely noticeable, and the eyes are hidden under the skin and completely atrophied. The color of different individuals may have some differences.

Short soft wool of mole rats usually looks like a mixture of brown, gray and brown shades in different proportions, sometimes on the head and body there are bright spots. The rodent has a wide nose, usually painted black or brown. At the first meeting with a mole rump the upper and lower incisors are raised into the eye.

Where do ordinary mole rats live

For permanent habitation, an ordinary mole rat usually chooses a steppe or forest-steppe for himself. He likes to settle near beams, along roads dividing fields, and forest roads. It can be found in Russia, Ukraine and Moldova. In the northern part of the range the mole rat is considered rare, although it is the most common species of its kind, which also includes the sandy, giant, Bukovinian and Podolsky mole rats.

At the moment, the conservation of the species is threatened by plowing of land, measures to improve the properties of land and protect plants. Meanwhile, one can not say that this species is on the verge of extinction. Anxiety among the relevant organizations arises only about the conservation of populations in some northern and southern zones where the common mole rats live. The Red Book of the International Union for the Protection has it on its lists. In view of this, trapping of animals in certain zones is prohibited, and human actions in their native habitats are limited.

How do ordinary mole rats live

Ordinary mole rat, in short, his whole life, and this is an average of 2.5-4 years, is underground, digs complex tunnel systems and extracts food. Most of all the animal likes roots, tubers and bulbs of plants, but can also eat a stem with leaves. About 10 kg of provisions must be prepared for the mole rat for winter. At this time of year, his life activity is noticeably reduced, but the rodent does not fall into hibernation.

The optimal density of the common mole rat population is 3 individuals per hectare, but this number can reach up to 20. With the help of sharp incisors and paws the animals break through to themselves a branched two-level system of burrows. The upper tier lies at a depth of 20-25 cm, and the lower tier, where the mole rat forms galleries for the nest and the location of food reserves, is at a depth of 3-4 m. The outer openings are not permanent, but are formed only to extract the dug earth .

How does the animal multiply?

The social structure of mole rats is made up of family groups that include one male and one or two females. If the females are two, they give birth in turns in a year. Mating occurs in the spring, and a brood consisting of 2-3 calves may appear, from February to May. Half of the males live apart and do not produce offspring.

The settlement of young animals occurs at a distance of tens or hundreds of meters. Females do this in the first year of life, climbing to the surface, which explains their high mortality. Most often they are the object of hunting birds of prey and foxes. The males are separated from the mother a year later, without leaving the bowels of the earth. The main underground enemy of mole rats is the steppe grouse.

A wild beetle

Branched underground labyrinths are perfect for the life of mole rats, but they can cause trouble for a person. If a garden or a homestead becomes the habitat of this rodent, you can say goodbye to the lion's share of the crop. Most likely, the animal will like carrots, potatoes and onions. To taste, he may also have onion, bean, corn and young trees.

Infinite heaps of dug earth, subsidence of soil, the sudden disappearance of planted crops and even small trees - that's what people watch when an ordinary mole rat settles on their land. The description of his wrecking can be continued for a long time, and stopping them is an impossible task for many.

How to get rid of mole rats

Only one question arises when a mole rinder is planted on a household plot, how to get rid of a pest? For many, this becomes an impossible task. After all, the animal is constantly hiding in the ground and its presence, creating new embankments and destroying planted plants, only at night.

It is best to try to create such conditions that the animal alone left the land. For this, a lot of ways are invented, but none of them guarantees that the animal will run away forever. But still it is worth every effort to get rid of the mole rat without spilling his blood.

One of the most frequently used methods is to fill his tunnel with water. But this may require too much water, since the animal's underground passages are very branched. And if the soil quickly absorbs moisture, this method is completely useless. Some try to smoke a four-legged neighbor with smoke, pouring kerosene or fetid mixtures into the hole. Another way is to create a constant noise on the site of his residence, which the ordinary mole rat does not tolerate. Alternatively, an ultrasonic repeller can be used.

Radical ways to get rid of mole rats

When you can not get rid of the mole rat, some resort to a more radical measure - murder. To do this, you can find the animal by opening one of its moves. He does not like drafts, so he will certainly want to close the hole with earth. As soon as he approaches, he will be able to destroy it.

Another way is to make a hole in the hole and place a trap in it so that the mole rat enters it on the way to the open aperture. It is important that the trap does not have a human smell, for which it is worth it to rub it with potatoes or earth. You can use the poison to kill rodents. But if the plot has something to profit from, the rodent may not have a fucking poisoned food.

Ordinary mole rat is a rodent, which few people saw alive. Underground life with night activity has led to what few know about its existence. Many would prefer to never know about the existence of such an underground man, instead of seeing how he destroys the growing crops on the site.