Desmane
| Desmane | ||||||||||||
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Russian desman ( Desmana moschata ) |
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| Desmanini | ||||||||||||
| Thomas , 1912 | ||||||||||||
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The Desmane (Desmanini) are a tribe (genus group) of the mole family (Talpidae). Of all moles, they are best adapted to aquatic life. The group includes two species, the Russian Desman and the Pyrenees Desman .
features
With a head body length of 11 to 21 centimeters (including a tail that is just as long) and a weight of up to 220 grams, they are the largest representatives of the moles. The long nose is trunk-like and very flexible. The eyes are small and the ears are hidden in the fur. The long, flattened tail and the webbed feet, especially on the hind legs, are adaptations to the aquatic way of life. Their fur is reddish brown on the top and grayish on the underside. On the underside of their tail they have a scent gland from which they secrete a musk-like secretion.
The two species differ in that the Pyrenean Desman is smaller, has a longer snout, and its tail is only flattened at the tip.
distribution and habitat
The two species have separate distribution areas. The Pyrenees Desman lives in the north of the Iberian Peninsula and the Russian Desman inhabits southwest Russia and adjacent areas. Fossil finds from Great Britain and Central Europe show that these animals were more common in the past.
Desmans live close to bodies of water, with the Pyrenees Desman preferring fast-flowing waters, while the Russian Desman also lives near lakes and ponds.
Way of life and food
Desmane inhabit burrows in the bank area, whereby the Russian Desman often builds his own burrows, while the Pyrenees Desman uses natural shelters or burrows of other animals. Desmans are more social than most other insectivores , often several animals inhabit a burrow. They are predominantly nocturnal, during the day they retreat to their burrows to rest. At night they go in search of food, mostly swimming in the water to look for something to eat.
The diet of the Desmane consists of insects and their larvae, crustaceans , worms , but also small vertebrates such as fish , amphibians and small rodents .
Reproduction
Once or twice a year, the female gives birth to one to five young animals after a gestation period of around 30 to 50 days. These are suckled for around a month.
threat
The main threats to desmans include water pollution and competition from neozoa such as the American mink , nutria and muskrat . In earlier times the Russian Desman was also hunted for the Desman fur , today the species is protected. Both species are listed as endangered ( vulnerable ) by the IUCN .
Systematics
Recent studies have shown that the burrowing actual moles of Eurasia are more closely related to the Desmanes than to the New World moles , which are also buried. The previously suspected comparison of desmanes and digging moles is therefore phylogenetically not tenable. That is why the Desmane are now regarded as part of the old world moles and no longer as a separate subfamily.
literature
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 2 volumes. 6th edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD et al. 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .
- Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World . A taxonomic and geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .
Web links
- "Desman mythical creatures - GEO.de" , August 12, 2010, video
- Pyrenean desman: On the trail of Europe's oddest beast , footage of a Pyrenean desman (BBC, English)