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Moles
(family: Talpidae) have been around for about 45 million years and they
inhabit most of the world except Australia, Greenland and Antarctica.
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The
mole's dense, velvety-soft coat is made up of 3,000 hairs per square
centimeter!
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The European mole constructs mounds
that occasionally contain over 750 kg of soil!
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Moles
contain twice as much blood as other mammals of similar size.
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The
oxygen content aboveground at sea level is about 21%, but below ground
in the mole tunnel it can drop to as little as 6%.
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The
carbon dioxide levels in mole tunnels can be as much as 10 times those
found in the atmosphere.
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Marathon
runners possess roughly 6% body fat; the mole rarely has more than 3%.
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Moles
prefer grassland habitats because they generally support the largest
variety and quantity of food.
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Moles
consume about 50% of their weight in food daily; the average mole will
eat close to 20kg of food annually!
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Moles
spend more time sleeping than digging tunnels and constructing mounds.
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Moles
are very territorial and they will aggressively defend their home
ranges from trespassing neighbors - sometimes to the death!
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Moles use a personalized liquid scent to
mark their territories; it also reveals their sex to their neighbors.
