Marsupial mole

The marsupial mole lives in the dry lands of Australia. It spends most of its time under the ground. It has very soft, pale hair. This hair can look golden in the light.

This small animal cannot see well. It has no outer ears to hear. Its head is shaped like a cone.

It uses big, flat claws to dig. These claws help it move through the dirt. It uses its back feet to push soil away.

The mole has a special pouch. The pouch faces backward. This keeps sand out of the pouch.

It can only have two babies at once. It is a very busy digger!

Marsupial moles live in the dry middle of Australia. There are two kinds of these small mammals. One lives in the south and one lives in the north. They spend most of their time under the ground. They only come to the surface after it rains.

These moles are built for digging. They have a cone-shaped head and a tube-shaped body. Their eyes are tiny lenses under the skin. Because of this, they are functionally blind. This means they cannot see. They also have no outer ears. They only have two small holes under their hair.

To move, they swim through the soil. They do not make permanent tunnels. Instead, they use big, spade-shaped claws on their front feet. These claws help them dig up and down. Their back feet are flat. They use them to push dirt behind them.

Their hair is pale cream or white. It has a golden sheen. They have a small pouch for their young. The pouch faces backward. This way, sand does not fill it up. The pouch has two teats. This means a mother can only have two babies at one time.

Marsupial moles are very special mammals from the Australian interior. There are two different species living there today. One is the southern marsupial mole, called itjaritjari by the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people. The other is the northern marsupial mole, known as the kakarratul. These small animals spend most of their lives underground. They only come to the surface occasionally, perhaps after it rains. They are quite unique because they look like other moles from different parts of the world. This is a process called convergent evolution.

These moles have a very specific way they work. They do not build permanent tunnels like some other animals. Instead, they swim through the soil. They use their front feet to dig in an up and down motion. Their front feet have two large, spade-shaped claws on the third and fourth digits. These claws help them move dirt in front of them. Their back feet are flat with three small claws. They use these back feet to push the soil behind them.

Many parts of their bodies help them live in the sand. Their heads are shaped like a cone. They have a leathery shield over their muzzle to help them dig. Their bodies are shaped like a tube. Their hair is a pale cream or white color with a golden sheen. Their eyes are just tiny lenses under the skin. Because they have no pupils, they are functionally blind. They also have no external ears, only two tiny holes under their hair. Their pouch faces backward so sand does not fill it up.

Scientists have studied these animals for a long time. An American paleontologist named William King Gregory wrote that they are true marsupials. Many studies using DNA have proven this is correct. We also have fossils from the early Miocene period. These fossils are called Naraboryctes and they were found at Riversleigh in Queensland. These old fossils show how the animals changed over time. They show a mix of features from ancestors that lived on the surface.

If you have seen a common mole, you might think they are the same. But marsupial moles are very different in how they are built. They have special bones in their necks to keep their heads steady while digging. They are also the only marsupials with a true cloaca. Their teeth are also very different from other marsupials. Their upper teeth are shaped like the Greek letter lambda. This makes them very different from the moles found in North America or Eurasia.

Marsupial moles are highly specialized mammals found in the Australian interior. They belong to the genus Notoryctes, a name taken from Ancient Greek. The name means "south digger." These animals are unique because they are marsupials that live almost entirely underground. They are divided into two distinct species. The southern marsupial mole is known as Notoryctes typhlops. The Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people call this species the itjaritjari. The other species is the northern marsupial mole, or Notoryctes caurinus. This animal is also known as the kakarratul. These small creatures play a vital role in their desert ecosystems.

These moles are a famous example of convergent evolution. This means they have evolved to look and act like animals in different parts of the world. They fill an ecological niche similar to true moles in North America and Eurasia. They also resemble golden moles from Southern Africa. However, their digging method is different from the "lateral scratch" style used by true moles. Instead, marsupial moles use a parasagittal style of digging. This means they move their limbs in an up and down plane. They use their forelimbs and large central claws to excavate the soil in front of them. They do not build permanent burrows. Instead, they essentially swim through the soil.

Every part of their anatomy is built for life beneath the sand. Their bodies are tubular in shape, which helps them move through tight spaces. Their heads are shaped like a cone. A leathery shield covers their muzzle to protect them while they dig. They have very short limbs and reduced digits. The forefeet feature two large, spade-shaped claws on the third and fourth digits. These are used to dig. The hindfeet are flattened and have three small claws. These feet push the soil backward as the animal moves forward. To keep their heads steady, their last five cervical vertebrae are fused together. This gives the head much-needed rigidity.

Living underground has changed how their senses work. Marsupial moles are functionally blind. Their eyes have become vestigial lenses located under the skin. These lenses lack a pupil. They also lack external ears. Instead, they have only two tiny holes hidden under their thick hair. Their hair is very fine and short. It is a pale cream or white color. It even has an iridescent golden sheen. Their pouch is small but well developed. Importantly, the pouch faces backward. This prevents sand from filling the pouch while the animal digs. The pouch contains only two teats. Because of this, they cannot support more than two young at one time.

Scientists have used many methods to study these animals. An American paleontologist named William King Gregory once wrote that Notoryctes is a true marsupial. Modern science has confirmed this through many different tests. Researchers use mitochondrial DNA and nuclear DNA to study them. They also look at rare genomic events and comparative anatomy. These datasets show that they are part of the Australidelphian radiation. Specifically, they are the sister taxon to a clade containing dasyuramorphs and perameliamorphs. They are also the only marsupials that are testicond. They are also the only marsupials with a true cloaca.

We can learn about their history through the fossil record. Fossils of an ancestor called Naraboryctes were found at Riversleigh in Queensland. These fossils date back to the early Miocene. Naraboryctes shows a mosaic of features. It shows how the species moved from being surface-dwelling ancestors to specialized diggers. The fossil record also shows changes in their teeth. The teeth of living marsupial moles are degenerate. Their upper molar teeth are zalambdodont. This means they look like an inverted Greek letter lambda. This is a very different dental structure compared to many other mammals. The fossil record shows that the number of teeth can vary between individuals.

Understanding the marsupial mole helps us understand how life adapts to extreme environments. They show how different species can arrive at the same biological solutions. Their specialized claws, fused neck bones, and backward-facing pouches are all responses to a life in the sand. They represent a unique branch of the marsupial family tree. By studying their DNA and fossils, scientists continue to map the history of Australian wildlife. Their existence reminds us how much variety exists in the natural world.