Strange mammals like the star-nosed mole

While mammals like dogs, cats, bears, and humans are well known, there are many lesser-known mammalian species that have truly bizarre and unusual adaptations.

In this in-depth exploration, we’ll dive into two especially strange mole varieties – the star-nosed mole and marsupial mole. Understanding their quirky evolutionary origins and characteristics sheds light on nature’s incredible diversity and ability to carve out new ecological niches.

The Star-Nosed Mole: Don’t Blink or You’ll Miss Its Super-Quick Sniffing

Native to wet lowland areas of eastern North America, the star-nosed mole is easily recognized by its extraordinary facial appendage consisting of 22 pink fleshy stalks arranged around its snout in a radial pattern resembling a star.

Each of these “tentacles” is packed with over 25,000-minute sensory receptors called Eimer’s organs, allowing this mole to feel and smell with hyper-acute precision at lightning speeds.

In fact, the star-nosed mole can examine and identify food at a rate of around 250 examinations per second through tactile stimuli alone, making it the fastest-sniffing land mammal.

With sensing abilities completely focused on its face and forepaws rather than eyesight which is quite poor, the star-nosed mole relies primarily on its extraordinarily sensitive snout when hunting underwater or burrowing to identify food, threats, and more solely through touch.

Its highly processed somatosensory cortex maps the positions and textures being detected by its star-like nose protrusions with incredible accuracy and rapid processing power, providing a sensory superpower no other mammal can rival.

The mysterious but undeniable success of this strangely adapted anatomy suggests its unique sniffing ability confers a significant evolutionary advantage for finding prey amid complex environments.

The Marsupial Mole: Australia’s Enigmatic Burrowing Buzzsaw

While Australia is renowned for its curious marsupials like kangaroos and koalas that raise young in pouches, perhaps none are so extraordinary and enigmatic as the aptly named marsupial mole.

Believed to inhabit the sandy soils of Australia’s southern region, remarkably little is known about this mole’s rare and elusive existence due to its entirely subterranean lifestyle spent entirely underground.

Its diminutive dimensions of only 9cm long including a stubby non-prehensile tail assist burrowing, with powerful forelimbs bearing large claws ideal for excavating tunnels.

However, its most unusual adaptations involve specialized spade-like nails on its hind legs which spin like miniature buzzsaws when kicked against tunnel walls, allowing the mole to essentially buzzsaw through dense soils at remarkable speeds up to 70cm per minute.

Whether searching underground passageways or digging new tunnels, the marsupial mole flies through soils using highly kinetic hind feet that revolutionized burrowing ability.

Other specialized characteristics like furless soft skin optimized for tunneling support its completely fossorial niche, earning it the scientific name “Notoryctes” meaning “burrowing back”.

Despite remaining a great Australian mystery, the incredible adaptations of the marsupial mole stand as a testament to nature’s creativity in evolving solutions to occupy even the most specialized microhabitats.

Its bizarre burrowing buzzsaw design highlights yet more of life’s unseen marvels hidden below ground.

Other Strange But Fascinating Mole Species

While the star-nosed and marsupial moles stand out as especially strange even among their own subterranean order, other mole varieties exhibit intriguing attributes:

Desert mole rats living in Africa’s hyper-arid regions have kidney-shaped noses well-suited for burrowing in sand and appear nearly blind, relying on sensitive vibrissae “whiskers”.

Talpidae “shrew moles” superficially resemble rodent moles but are more closely related to shrews, possessing venomous saliva and philtrum vibrissae for underground food location.

Hairy-tailed moles of Central America sport long furry tails and unusually broad spade-like feet for rapidly excavating soft volcanic soils and feeding on earthworms.

The surprisingly aquatic Eastern mole of East Asia has evolved webbed paws and a labyrinthine respiratory system enabling underwater tunneling through soft mud and rice paddy sediments.

While mainstream compared to bizarre marsupial buzzsaws, these lesser-known moles still exhibit intriguingly peculiar evolutionary tweaks within fossorial habits, driven by nature’s endless creativity carving novel niches.

The diversification of mammal life continues unfolding wonderful surprises both above and below ground.

Aye-aye:

This nocturnal primate is endemic to Madagascar. It has rodent-like ever-growing incisors that must be constantly worn down.

Its extra long, thin middle finger allows it to extract grubs and larvae from under tree bark – its main food source. Locals believe it brings death or bad luck due to its unusual appearance.Its population is declining due to habitat loss and hunting.

Proboscis monkey:

Found only in Borneo, the male proboscis monkey is quite large with its distinct potbelly and elongated nose, used to make loud honking calls.

Groups consist of one male, several females, and young. To attract mates and assert dominance, males display their vivid crimson faces and large nose sacks. They are threatened by rainforest loss.

Maned wolf:

Though called a wolf, it’s actually South America’s largest canid. Adapted for speed over long distances, it hunts solitary or in pairs for small prey like rodents, birds, and armadillos.

DNA analysis showed it is more closely related to dogs than wolves. Habitat destruction is reducing its shrubland range.

Tenrec:

These small insectivores come in 19 species across Madagascar/islands in sizes from shrews to hedgehogs. Some species can emit repugnant odors from anal glands as a defense.

Others like the golden-brown mammal tenrec generate electric shocks. They are important seed dispersers and face habitat degradation threats.

Duck-billed platypus:

This bizarre egg-laying mammal is semi-aquatic, using its bill to search for aquatic invertebrates and worms in streams of eastern Australia.

Males have hind leg spurs which deliver powerful venom. It exhibits traits of mammals, reptiles, and birds and is one of the few venomous mammals. Dams and pollution jeopardize its rivers.

Saola:

Discovered in 1992 in Vietnam, very little is known of its elusive habits in dense montane forests. Its distinctive large horns are used in mating battles.

Genetic testing assigned it its own unique family, signaling its isolated evolution. Further study is needed amid growing environmental stresses.

Gerenuk:

With an elongated neck, this graceful East African antelope can reach treetop leaves when few other grazers can. Groups consist of females and young defended by males.

They evolved this advantage to exploit food scarce on open plains. Poaching and habitat loss now threaten their survival.

Pot-bellied pig:

Once considered a subspecies of wild boar, domestic pigs originated from Eurasian wild boars. As pets today, they are intelligent and often respond well to training.

Their far wilder cousins in Borneo are still relatively unknown. Improper releases now jeopardize native species elsewhere.

Conclusion

As some of the animal kingdom’s strangest denizens, the star-nosed and marsupial moles illustrate just two incredible examples of nature’s versatility in designing new solutions within tight perimeters.

Their bizarre sensory super-sniffing powers and underground burrowing buzzsaw feet push physiological limits in extraordinary and unique ways.

Appreciating these marvels and broader mammal diversification provides perspective on the tenacity and ingenuity of evolution, along with inspiration for further scientific discoveries amid life’s unseen majority.

Though peculiar, these mammals leave little doubt that wondering deeply into nature’s obscure corners pays fascination. Learn More about mammals.