Desman

Desmans are special animals that live in the water. They belong to the mole family, which is called Talpidae. These small creatures are insectivores. This means their diet is made of insects. They are very good at living in wet places.

Desmans are quite different from the moles you might see in a garden. Most moles spend their time digging in the dirt. Desmans have webbed paws instead. These paws help them move through the water. Their front paws are not well-adapted for digging in the ground.

How a desman moves depends on its body. The webbing between its toes works like flippers. This helps the animal swim through streams. Because they are built for water, they do not dig well. They use their bodies to find food in wet areas. This way of life makes them unique among moles.

We can learn about desmans by looking at fossils. Long ago, during the Miocene, these animals were much more diverse. They lived in many different parts of the world. Two groups called Gaillardia and Magnatalpa lived in North America. Scientists think today's living species came from a fossil group. This group is named Archaeodesmana.

Today, only two species of desman are still alive. The Russian desman lives in European Russia. The Pyrenean desman lives in the Pyrenees mountains. It also lives in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Both of these animals are endangered. This means they are at risk of disappearing. The Russian desman is in even more trouble. It is called critically endangered.

Many other kinds of desmans lived in the past. Some lived in Europe, like the genus Desmanella. Other types lived in Hungary, such as Mygalinia. These animals lived during the Late Miocene. There were also groups like Asthenoscapter and Ruemkelia. Even though many are gone, they show us how desmans changed. We can see how they moved from the past to today.