In this post there will be scary, nasty, cute, kind, beautiful, incomprehensible animals.
Plus a short comment about each. They all really exist
Watch and be surprised

SNAP TOOTH- a mammal from the order of insectivores, divided into two main species: the Cuban slittooth and the Haitian. The animal is relatively large compared to other types of insectivores: its length is 32 centimeters, its tail is on average 25 cm, the weight of the animal is about 1 kilogram, and its body is dense.


MANED WOLF. Lives in South America. The long legs of the wolf are the result of evolution in matters of adaptation to the habitat; they help the animal to overcome obstacles in the form of tall grass growing on the plains.


AFRICAN CIVET- the only representative of the genus of the same name. These animals live in Africa open spaces with high grass from Senegal to Somalia, southern Namibia and eastern South Africa. The size of the animal can visually increase quite significantly when the civet raises its fur when excited. And her fur is thick and long, especially on the back closer to the tail. The paws, muzzle and tail end are completely black, most of the body is spotted.


MUSKRAT. The animal is quite famous due to its sonorous name. It's just a good photo.


PROCHIDNA. This miracle of nature usually weighs up to 10 kg, although larger specimens have also been observed. By the way, the length of the echidna’s body reaches 77 cm, and this is not counting their cute five to seven centimeter tail. Any description of this animal is based on comparison with the echidna: the legs of the echidna are higher, the claws are more powerful. Another feature of the echidna’s appearance is the spurs on the hind legs of males and the five-fingered hind limbs and three-fingered forelimbs.


CAPIBARA. Semi-aquatic mammal, the largest of modern rodents. It is the only representative of the capybara family (Hydrochoeridae). There is a dwarf variety, Hydrochoerus isthmius, which is sometimes considered as a separate species (lesser capybara).


SEA CUCUMBER. HOLOTHURIA. Sea capsules, sea cucumbers (Holothuroidea), a class of invertebrate animals such as echinoderms. Species eaten as food are commonly known as sea cucumbers.


PANGOLIN. This post simply could not do without him.


HELL VAMPIRE. Mollusk. Despite its obvious similarity with octopus and squid, scientists have identified this mollusk as a separate order Vampyromorphida (lat.), because it is characterized by retractable sensitive whip-shaped filaments.


AARDVARK. In Africa, these mammals are called aardvark, which translated into Russian means “earthen pig.” In fact, the aardvark is very similar in appearance to a pig, only with an elongated snout. The structure of the ears of this amazing animal is very similar to that of a hare. There is also a muscular tail, which is very similar to the tail of an animal such as a kangaroo.

JAPANESE GIANT SALAMANDER. Today it is the largest amphibian, which can reach 160 cm in length, weigh up to 180 kg and can live up to 150 years, although the officially recorded maximum age of the giant salamander is 55 years.


BEARDED PIG. In different sources, the Bearded Pig species is divided into two or three subspecies. These are the curly bearded pig (Sus barbatus oi), which lives on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Sumatra, the Bornean bearded pig (Sus barbatus barbatus) and the Palawan bearded pig, which live, as the name suggests, on the islands of Borneo and Palawan, as well as on Java , Kalimantan and small islands of the Indonesian archipelago in Southeast Asia.




SUMATRAN RHINO. They belong to the odd-toed ungulates of the rhinoceros family. This type of rhinoceros is the smallest of the entire family. The body length of an adult Sumatran rhinoceros can reach 200–280 cm, and the height at the withers can vary from 100 to 150 cm. Such rhinoceroses can weigh up to 1000 kg.


SULAWESI BEAR COUSCUS. An arboreal marsupial living in the upper layer of lowland tropical forests. The fur of the bear cuscus consists of a soft undercoat and coarse guard hairs. Coloration ranges from gray to brown, with a lighter belly and limbs, and varies depending on the geographic subspecies and age of the animal. The prehensile, non-haired tail is approximately half the length of the animal and serves as a fifth limb, making it easier to move through the dense tropical forest. The bear cuscus is the most primitive of all cuscus, retaining primitive tooth growth and structural features of the skull.


GALAGO. Its big fluffy tail clearly comparable to squirrel. And his charming face and graceful movements, flexibility and insinuation, clearly reflect his cat-like traits. The amazing jumping ability, mobility, strength and incredible dexterity of this animal clearly show its nature as a funny cat and an elusive squirrel. Of course, there would be a place to use your talents, because a cramped cage is very poorly suited for this. But, if you give this animal a little freedom and sometimes allow him to walk around the apartment, then all his quirks and talents will come true. Many even compare it to a kangaroo.


WOMBAT. Without a photograph of a wombat, it is generally impossible to talk about strange and rare animals.


AMAZONIAN DOLPHIN. It is the largest river dolphin. Inia geoffrensis, as scientists call it, reaches 2.5 meters in length and weighs 2 quintals. Light gray juveniles become lighter with age. The Amazonian dolphin has a full body, with a thin tail and a narrow muzzle. A round forehead, a slightly curved beak and small eyes are the characteristics of this species of dolphin. The Amazonian dolphin is found in the rivers and lakes of Latin America.


MOONFISH or MOLA-MOLA. This fish can be more than three meters long and weigh about one and a half tons. The largest specimen of the sunfish was caught in New Hampshire, USA. Its length was five and a half meters, there is no data on weight. The shape of the fish’s body resembles a disk; it was this feature that served as the reason for Latin name. The moon fish has thick skin. It is elastic, and its surface is covered with small bony projections. The larvae of fish of this species and young individuals swim in the usual way. Adults large fish swim on their sides, quietly moving their fins. They seem to lie on the surface of the water, where they are very easy to notice and catch. However, many experts believe that only sick fish swim this way. As an argument, they cite the fact that the stomach of fish caught on the surface is usually empty.


TASMANIAN DEVIL. Being the largest of modern predatory marsupials, this black animal with white spots on the chest and rump, with a huge mouth and sharp teeth has a dense physique and a stern disposition, for which, in fact, it was called the devil. Emitting ominous screams at night, the massive and clumsy Tasmanian devil looks like a small bear: the front legs are slightly longer than the hind legs, the head is large, and the muzzle is blunt.


LORI. Feature Loris have large eyes that may be bordered by dark circles; there is a white dividing stripe between the eyes. The face of a loris can be compared to a clown mask. This most likely explains the animal's name: Loeris means "clown".


GAVIAL. Of course, one of the representatives of the crocodile order. With age, the gharial's muzzle becomes even narrower and longer. Due to the fact that the gharial feeds on fish, its teeth are long and sharp, located at a slight angle for ease of eating.


OKAPI. FOREST GIRAFFE. Traveling through Central Africa, journalist and African explorer Henry Morton Stanley (1841-1904) more than once encountered local aborigines. Having once met an expedition equipped with horses, the natives of the Congo told the famous traveler that they had wild animals, very similar to his horses. The Englishman, who had seen a lot, was somewhat puzzled by this fact. After some negotiations in 1900, the British were finally able to purchase parts of the skin of the mysterious animal from the local population and send them to the Royal Zoological Society in London, where the unknown animal was given the name “Johnston's Horse” (Equus johnstoni), that is, it was assigned to the equine family . But imagine their surprise when a year later they managed to get a whole skin and two skulls of an unknown animal, and discovered that It looked more like a dwarf giraffe from the Ice Age. Only in 1909 was it possible to catch a living specimen of Okapi.

WALABI. TREE KANGAROO. The genus of Tree kangaroos - wallabies (Dendrolagus) includes 6 species. Of these, D. Inustus or the bear wallaby, D. Matschiei or Matchisha's wallaby, which has a subspecies D. Goodfellowi (Goodfellow's wallaby), D. Dorianus - the Doria wallaby, live in New Guinea. In Australian Queensland, there are D. Lumholtzi - Lumholtz's wallaby (bungari), D. Bennettianus - Bennett's wallaby, or tharibin. Their original habitat was New Guinea, but now wallabies are found in Australia. Tree kangaroos live in tropical forests mountainous regions, at altitudes from 450 to 3000m. above sea level. The body size of the animal is 52-81 cm, the tail is from 42 to 93 cm long. Wallabies weigh, depending on the species, from 7.7 to 10 kg for males and from 6.7 to 8.9 kg. females.


WOLVERINE. Moves quickly and deftly. The animal has an elongated muzzle, a large head, with rounded ears. The jaws are powerful, the teeth are sharp. Wolverine is a “big-footed” animal; its feet are disproportionate to the body, but their size allows them to move freely through deep snow cover. Each paw has huge and curved claws. Wolverine is an excellent tree climber and has keen eyesight. The voice is like a fox.


FOSSA. The island of Madagascar has preserved animals that are not found not only in Africa itself, but also in the rest of the world. One of the rarest animals is the Fossa - the only representative of the genus Cryptoprocta and the largest carnivorous mammal, living on the island of Madagascar. Appearance The Fossa is a bit unusual: it is a cross between a civet and a small puma. Sometimes the fossa is also called the Madagascar lion, since the ancestors of this animal were much larger and reached the size of a lion. Fossa has a squat, massive and slightly elongated body, the length of which can reach up to 80 cm (on average it is 65-70 cm). The fossa's paws are long, but quite thick, with the hind paws being higher than the front paws. The tail is often equal to the length of the body and reaches up to 65 cm.


MANUL approves of this post and is here only because he has to be. Everyone already knows him.


PHENEC. STEPPE FOX. He assents to the manula and is present here insofar as. After all, everyone saw him.


NAKED MORAVARY gives the Pallas's cat and fennec cat pluses in their karma and invites them to organize a club of the most fearful animals in RuNet.


PALM THIEF. Representative of decapod crustaceans. Its habitat is the western part Pacific Ocean and tropical islands of the Indian Ocean. This animal from the family of land crayfish is quite large for its species. The body of an adult reaches a size of up to 32 cm and a weight of up to 3-4 kg. For a long time it was mistakenly believed that with its claws it could even split coconuts, which he then eats. To date, scientists have proven that crayfish can only feed on already split coconuts. They, being its main source of nutrition, gave the name palm thief. Although he is not averse to eating other types of food - the fruits of Pandanus plants, organic substances from the ground and even their own kind.

Mammals: badgers, foxes, marmots, gophers and many other animals dig holes in which they hide from bad weather and escape from enemies, perfectly adapting to this way of life.

Most of the inhabitants of the burrows settle in ready-made dwellings left by the previous owners.

But most mammals are engaged in arranging comfortable housing on their own. They carefully restore order, change the bedding and regularly clean their burrow.

Moles are the indigenous inhabitants of the underground.

Moles (genus Tair) are solitary in their lifestyle; the labyrinths of their underground corridors can occupy an area of ​​up to 1200 m2. Ventilation shafts are located along the mole’s home; a special place is occupied by a large chamber, which serves as a sleeping place for the mole.

They form families. The hole of this animal reaches a length of thirty meters and has several emergency exits. The badger willingly settles in quiet areas of the forest with soft soil, but its burrows are also found in the steppes or semi-deserts. Often on trees not far from the hole, the badger scratches the bark, leaving peculiar marks, this is how the animal cleans and sharpens its claws.

Wild rabbits have strong front legs, which they use to dig their burrows. These animals are capable of creating huge underground galleries with numerous rooms; they can accommodate a large colony of rabbits.

It lives in the northeast and south of Australia; when it moves underground, it seems as if the animal is swimming underground. He rake the ground in front of him, using the strong, pointed claws of the third and fourth fingers of the forelimbs. The mole pushes away the loose soil with its head, then rakes the soil under itself and with a quick movement of the whole body, the mole gracefully slides into the formed hole.

Foxes often choose a badger hole to settle. But the owner cannot even stand the smell of an unexpected tenant, so he leaves the dug hole and goes in search of a new place of settlement.

When digging a hole, the marsupial mole creates temporary short feeding passages. After an animal passes through them, the ground crumbles. In these temporary tunnels, the marsupial selects invertebrates in the ground; they form the bulk of its diet. In some cases, the marsupial mole is forced to climb to the surface and dig a tunnel in a new place. The marsupial mole's muzzle is covered with a keratinized shield.

The marsupial mole is an animal that is comfortable living only in the ground.

For many mammals, living underground brings tangible benefits. In winter, they hide from the cold in underground galleries, and when it’s hot outside, they rest in cool burrows from the high air temperature. The burrow protects animals from enemies and the cubs grow up under reliable protection.

One of the representatives of the family, the badger, digs underground storage facilities. And the ferret and ermine can occupy other people's abandoned holes. The underground inhabitants also include rodents - gray rats, shrews and voles; Representatives of the insectivorous order are moles.

Chipmunk - stores supplies for the winter in its underground hole.

Moles come to the surface of the earth only to collect building material for the nest or when frost occurs, and generally spend most of their lives underground. Sometimes animals come to the surface to search for food. Moles have many enemies, they are hunted by many different predators, most often the animals become prey for the red fox.

The badger eats a variety of foods. By way of life it is a nocturnal animal. Its main delicacy is earthworms. African meerkats, which live underground, come out to hunt during the day. The main food of these inhabitants of the African savannah is insects.

The burrow serves as the main refuge for animals living in countries with temperate climate, they are good for hiding from the cold. And the desert inhabitants escape the sweltering midday heat in their cool underground home.

The body shape of underground inhabitants ideally corresponds to movement through tunnels located underground. The mole's muzzle is extended forward, and the large forelimbs are long claws, resemble shovels, with which it is convenient for him to make holes underground. The mole's body is slightly narrowed towards the tail; this peculiar body shape ensures forward movement, like a rotor, and at the same time helps to push the excavated earth towards the walls of the tunnel. The mole pushes away the remaining soil with its hind paws. The mole's eyesight is very poor; it is not for nothing that they say: “blind as a mole,” but underground such an important flaw does not prevent him from leading an active lifestyle and finding earthworms.

Wombats are skilled underground tunnel diggers.

There are eight known species of badgers, all of them have a strong body with shortened paws, and their fur is distinguished by its thick hair. Their claws are retractable and very strong; this is an important device for digging deep holes. An animal similar to a badger lives in Australia. They call him a wombat. The female wombat has a pouch located on her abdomen that opens backward, whereas in other marsupials, such as the kangaroo, it opens forward. When digging holes, clay and sand do not get into such a bag.

It digs underground tunnels with one or the other front paw; its forelimbs are very short, but its claws are powerful and hard.

Bengal and Indian bandicoots live in tropical areas of Asia. These animals are small in size and also live underground. Bandicoots' ears are relatively small in size; their eyesight is weak: all this is necessary for the underground lifestyle, because underground vision and hearing are not so important for living, main role the sense of smell plays.

With the onset of the cold season, many animals hibernate; for this, they arrange winter bedrooms underground. But true hibernation is not typical for all species of mammals that live underground. The chipmunk prepares for hibernation especially carefully. He equips himself with a special storage facility for the winter and seals the entrance to the hole so tightly so that the cold does not get inside that there is a chance of suffocating in winter from lack of oxygen.

But instinct saves the animals in this harsh time; they usually wake up at the moment when oxygen deficiency occurs in the wintering chamber. The corridors in the chipmunk's hole are well insulated, their length reaches 7 m, one of them ends with a nesting chamber, in which the animals mate immediately after waking up from hibernation and the onset of warmth.

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You probably rarely think that under our feet, or rather underground, life is also in full swing. Some animals, insects and even birds have adapted well to living in the underground world, hidden from prying eyes.

Some people spend their entire lives underground and almost never come to the surface. Others dig holes in the ground, which they use as temporary homes for themselves and their offspring.

Most of the inhabitants of the underground kingdom are so small that they can only be seen under a microscope. There are millions of such creatures. These are mainly very small spider mites and other protozoan insects that feed on plant roots.

Mole

Mole

The most famous underground animals for us are moles. They easily break through long passages with their powerful, clawed, shovel-like paws. Moreover, this work is done not for pleasure, but to find food for themselves - earthworms and insect larvae. Their eyesight is worse. Tiny eyes are only able to distinguish light from darkness and do not see objects at all. Their sensitive nose and keen sense of smell help them navigate in the dark; they can sense any odors perfectly.

It happens that after a few years the owners abandon their holes and go to other places. And then foxes and skunks move into other people’s apartments, rearrange some things there for their own needs, and live quietly for themselves as long as they want.

Meet the underground animal - the mole:

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The honeycombs and the beautiful, intricately patterned web spread by the spider usually cause our surprise and admiration. But there are no less amazing buildings that we know little about, since they are hidden deep in the ground. The hamster, badger, mole and many other animals build their homes so perfect and complex, so well adapted to the “underground” life of their inhabitants, that they can easily be placed on a par with the most famous masterpieces of animal creativity.

Like bird nests, the burrows of various animals are characterized by an endless variety of shapes and internal structures. The study of burrows encounters serious difficulties. Indeed, how can one follow the secret life that flows under the dark arches of the earth in a tangle of galleries and passages, where it is not difficult for the inhabitants themselves to get lost? However, the patient observations of naturalists make it possible to give an idea of ​​the location and architecture of some underground dwellings and the customs of their inhabitants.

One of the simplest holes belongs to a wild rabbit. But even in it you will find a number of ingenious devices that have a protective purpose. A rabbit hole is a whole labyrinth of tunnels that often stretches for kilometers, and the rabbits themselves happen to lose their way and wander there, risking death from suffocation.

An interesting fact: for the birth and raising of offspring, the female rabbit builds a special hole. Everything is provided here for the convenience and safety of children. The hole is 60-80 cm deep and with one single exit ends in a tunnel with a rounded base, which the rabbit lines with dry grass, moss and a layer of fluff torn from her chest. Here she will give birth to rabbits, the number of which ranges from 4 to 8.

Every evening, after feeding the children and straightening their soft bed, the rabbit carefully closes the “door” with a lump of dry grass and fluff, and straw is added to it for better camouflage. When the babies begin to open their eyes, the gradually expanding window will allow the little rabbits to gradually get used to daylight. Some researchers believe that rabbits' habit of digging holes is not innate, but simply evolved as a defensive reaction against predators. Rabbits living in areas where there are neither people nor animals make their nests directly on the surface of the earth.

But here’s what’s curious: domestic rabbits, whose safety is not threatened, begin to dig holes at the first opportunity. And yet, rabbits can only be considered modest beginners in the field of “burrow construction.” The voles left them far behind them.

All species of field mice live in burrows. Their numerous galleries usually end in widened recesses; some of the chambers, covered with a thick layer of straw, serve as bedrooms. From these rooms a sleeve usually extends perpendicularly, which bends and, after numerous turns, ends in one of the galleries. In case of danger, mice use it as an emergency exit. Field mice collect fresh plants and grains in the summer, and rhizomes, bulbs, and tubers in the fall, which they then eat during the winter. These supplies are kept amazingly fresh. It turns out that mice, before filling their pantries, clean the bulbs and tubers to prevent them from sprouting.

If we consider underground dwellings in order of their increasing complexity, then the next place rightfully belongs to the hamster. He changes his apartments depending on the time of year. Its summer home is located close to the surface and has only one pantry for food. The winter one is dug much deeper, and there are several storerooms in it.

Although the hamster hibernates in winter, it makes large reserves for the winter: up to one hundred kilograms of grain, peas or potatoes can be found in its hole! Moreover, an old hamster is a much more thrifty owner than a young one. Young people are known to be frivolous. You will not find more than one storage room in the burrows of young animals. But the old people have three of them, and all three, as they say, are jam-packed. How does a hamster manage to make such huge reserves? To transport them, he has an amazing food basket: these are his cheek pouches.

The female hamster's burrow is different from the male hamster's. It is adapted mainly for breeding offspring. There are no storage rooms in it. The bedroom, lined with soft straw, is at least 33 cm in diameter, and its height is 8-14 cm. There is one gallery leading from it, which serves as an exit, and several entrance galleries. But usually only one is open. Other inputs are introduced when babies begin to move independently. The female takes great care of her children, but, they say, kicks them out when, by the fifteenth day, they declare their independence - they begin to dig...

The jerboa doesn't lag behind the hamster either. It also has different rooms for winter and summer. The groundhog is even more prudent. His winter hole, where he spends six months hibernation, located at great depth. By autumn, the animals bring hay here, fill the common room-bedroom with it and plug up all the holes. When the hibernation period begins, marmots bury themselves entirely in hay, 4-5 in one hole, curl up into a ball and thus endure harsh winters.

As you can see, one of the main functions of a hole is to protect animals from bad weather and temperature fluctuations. The constant microclimate of the burrow helps the animals survive in the high daytime temperatures of some deserts. Thus, during the day in a Karakum gerbil burrow it is 31° colder than on the soil surface, and at night in the burrow it is 16° warmer than outside.

Some animals living in burrows show amazing ingenuity. The Texas marsupial rat, for example, builds a mound over its home; 60 cm high and 1 m 50 cm in diameter, inside which she stores supplies and arranges a living room in case the hole is flooded.

And here is another very curious animal: the American prairie dog, a small rodent that has nothing in common with a real dog except the yelp with which it warns its relatives of approaching danger. Once upon a time, these cute animals were found in America in incredible large quantities. Their burrows were scattered over thousands of square miles, and the population of the underground "cities" numbered in the tens of millions. Now relatively few of them have survived. Their dwellings, usually located in prairies with short and dense grass and connected by well-trodden paths, are found along the mounds of earth discarded during digging.

The “cities” of the prairie dog are a very picturesque sight. IN warm weather rodents crawl out into the sun and, sitting on their mounds, exchange joyful yelps with their neighbors. But then an alarm sounds. The sentries warn of danger. The animals jump off the hills with lightning speed and dive into their holes. After some time, their curious faces reappear in the hole. What happened?

The most dangerous enemy of prairie dogs is the coyote, which resorts to very cunning tricks to get the rodent out of its hole. The prairie dog usually builds a kind of dam around the entrance to its burrow to protect itself from flooding. During rainy seasons, coyotes destroy one of the dam's segments. And then all that remains is to wait for the flood... The unfortunate owner of the hole, forced to crawl out of his shelter, will be immediately captured. It happened to observe how a coyote would plug the entrance to a hole with a clod of earth during the absence of the owner, and he would hide behind a mound. When the poor creature returned and found the doors of his house closed, he hesitated for a minute before diving into the next hole, and this moment was enough to kill him.

Sometimes two coyotes team up. One hides near the hole, and the other chases the small rodent and forces it to run to its home. After this, the coyote jumps through the hole and leaves. The animal, delighted that it has escaped danger, comes out of its shelter to admire the fleeing enemy. This is where his accomplice comes into play. As for the first coyote, he immediately returns to get his share of the spoils...

Another merciless enemy of the prairie dog is rattlesnake, which is seduced not only by the animal itself, but also by its hole. In general, cases of seizure of other people's property are not uncommon. Thus, the fox finds rabbit holes very convenient. She kills the rabbit, takes over its home, expands it and adapts it to her needs. True, the fox is quite capable of building its own housing, quite complex, with guardhouses, food warehouses, rooms for giving birth to cubs, but it does not disdain strangers.

Sometimes foxes settle down in spacious badger burrows. Badgers tolerate their uninvited “tenants”, but do not like them and often kick them out. It happens, however, that they leave on their own. They say that foxes survive their owners, taking advantage of their mania for cleanliness: they clog the holes, and the badgers have no choice but to leave their homes.

Badgers are generally very interesting animals. Usually, a number of generations of badgers use the same hole, but at the same time they dig other, new ones. The result is a very complex labyrinth, which sometimes has two or three floors and stretches for hundreds of meters. There are badger holes with 45-50 exits. Sometimes these large burrows communicate with each other. There is a known case when one burrowing dog entered a tunnel and disappeared. They thought that she had died, but after a while the dog came out of a hole on the other side of the hill.

And who lives under these small earthen mounds scattered throughout the forest clearing? The owners of these houses - moles - are truly amazing animals. The mole spends its entire life underground, only accidentally appearing on the surface. It is perfectly adapted to the peculiar conditions of its existence: a spindle-shaped body, strong paws, as if created for digging, and the absence of eyes and external ears. The mole’s “apartment” is usually located at great depths. In its center is a spacious room in which there is a bed of dry grass and grass. This room is surrounded by two circular galleries. One of them is located at ceiling level, the other is slightly lower. The upper gallery is smaller in diameter than the lower one. They are connected by two short passages, but the central room can be reached through a single passage leading from the upper gallery. Thus, the mole passes through the lower gallery, from there rises to the upper one, and only then gets into its main chamber.

That's not all! A sleeve extends from the bottom of the chamber, serving as an emergency exit in case of emergency. It rises and opens to corridors that radiate in all directions, but do not have access to the upper gallery. At the intersection of many galleries, far from the central room, there is a room in which the female gives birth and raises babies.

This wonderful underground fortress provides maximum security: it allows the inhabitants to escape from above if they are attacked from below, and vice versa. Apart from the central room, the wormhole is constantly changing. An animal that cannot stand light, cannot climb, jump, or even walk, moves very quickly underground. The mole digs all the time. With the help of highly developed muscles of the back of the head, it penetrates the soil with its muzzle, which it loosens with its front paws and throws away with its hind paws.

The operation occurs with incredible speed. He digs tunnels that reach 30 meters in length, digs tunnels that run under stream beds. Digs and moves forward at high speed.

The mole feeds on worms and insects that it finds underground. Whole heaps of earthworms were found in the wormhole - up to a thousand of them. What are these - random accumulations or a food warehouse? The experiments of zoologist Dejerbol confirm the second hypothesis. He watched the mole stock up in the corner of his cell. The mole dug a hole, put several worms there and covered them with earth. What is especially interesting: he first paralyzed the worms with a bite near the head end.

In the spring, the mole crawls out of its shelter and wanders along the surface in search of a female. Sometimes a battle breaks out between two rivals... in a hole quickly dug for this purpose. The winner devours the loser and hurries to meet the female, who in the meantime has already begun to dig a corridor to escape... The mole catches up with her, returns her, and she submits to the circumstances. Both then begin to dig... They dig a new underground room, in which after four weeks the female will give birth, so to speak, under such circumstances, to a new generation of moles.

P.S. What else are British scientists talking about: that the amazing economy, ingenuity, and design abilities that some animals possess that dig holes could be the envy of, say, those who make economy PVC panels from the manufacturer; they would have a lot to learn from our smaller brothers .

Badgers, foxes and many other animals dig holes in which they hide from bad weather and escape from enemies. These mammals are perfectly adapted to this lifestyle.

photo: Mike Seamons

What animals live underground?

Most animals that live underground settle in ready-made burrows left by previous residents. However, most mammals arrange their own homes themselves. They conscientiously take care of order and regularly clean their burrow, changing the bedding.

Moles (Tair's clan) lead a solitary life in a labyrinth of underground corridors, which can occupy an area of ​​up to 1200 m2. In the molehills, visible from the outside, there are ventilation shafts or a large chamber, which is intended for sleeping.

Badgers live in families. An ordinary hole reaches thirty meters in diameter and has several exits. The badger most readily settles in quiet areas of the forest with soft soil, but it can also be found in the steppe or semi-desert areas. On the trees not far from its hole, marks from the badger's claws are visible - this is how the animal cleans or sharpens its claws.

photo: Andy Purviance

Wild rabbits They dig holes with their strong front paws. They are able to build large galleries with numerous rooms in which a large colony of these animals can live.

Marsupial mole, which lives in the northeast and south of Australia, moves underground in a special way - it seems as if the animal is swimming. The mole loosens the ground in front of it, quickly working with strong, pointed claws of the third and fourth fingers of the forelimbs. Then mole pushes it away with his head and rakes the soil under himself, making quick movements with his whole body, the mole deftly slips into the dug hole.

photo: Mick Talbot

Interesting facts about animals living in burrows

• Sometimes they settle in part of the Badger Hole foxes. The badger cannot stand their smell, so it is often forced to leave its hole.
• The marsupial mole digs temporary short feeding passages. After an animal walks over them, the ground crumbles. In these temporary tunnels, the marsupial mole searches underground, which form the main part of its menu. Sometimes a marsupial mole gets to the surface and continues to dig a tunnel in a new place. The muzzle of the marsupial mole is protected by a keratinized shield.
• Many mammals benefit from living underground. When it’s cold, they hide in underground galleries from the cold, and when it’s hot outside, they hide from the heat. In addition, the animals are protected from enemies and can safely raise their young.

photo:Doug Zwick

Many representatives of the mustelid family dig underground storage facilities (for example, a badger), or occupy other people's abandoned holes, as they do ferrets and stoats. Rodents also live underground - gray rats, voles and shrews; insectivores - moles.

Moles They spend most of their lives underground. They come to the surface in order to collect building material for the nest or if frost occurs, then the animals go outside to search for food. Moles are hunted by many different predators, including red foxes.

photo: Darryl Dawson

Badger practically omnivorous. It is nocturnal. The badger loves to eat earthworms. Other animals that live underground, such as African meerkats, come out to hunt during the day. They feed mainly on insects.

Animals living in countries with temperate climates hide from the cold in burrows. And desert residents hide underground from the sweltering midday heat.

photo: tim phillips

Animal life underground

The body shape of mammals leading an underground lifestyle is ideal for moving through underground tunnels. Thus, the mole has a pointed mouth and spade-shaped forelimbs with long claws, with which it is convenient for him to dig the ground. The mole's body tapers slightly towards the tail. Thanks to this shape, it moves forward like a rotor, and at the same time pushes part of the excavated earth towards the walls of the tunnel. The mole moves the remaining soil to its hind legs and uses them to reject them back. The mole's vision is practically undeveloped, but such a seemingly important flaw does not prevent him from leading an active lifestyle.

All eight species of badgers have a strong body with short legs that are covered with thick short hair. Their claws are very strong, non-retractable, and are perfectly suited for digging. In Australia, the equivalent of badgers is . The pouch, which is located on the stomach of a female wombat, does not open forward, like in most chipmunks. He prepares a special storage room for himself for the winter. Chipmunks close the entrance to their burrow very tightly to prevent cold from getting in, and sometimes suffocate from lack of oxygen.

But usually they instinctively wake up at the moment when the oxygen in the “bedroom” runs out. Well-insulated corridors in the chipmunk's hole are 7 m long, one of them turns into a nesting chamber, since the animals mate immediately after waking up from hibernation.

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