Did You Know?

The Adaptable Rodent

This new species of shrew-rat discovered in the Philippines is a remarkable discovery as it shows how an animal will adapt to their surroundings. Most rodents, check that – all other rodent species are known for their gnawing and chewing prowess. They all have numerous teeth designed for chewing roots, leaves and even insects, however, this new species hardly has any teeth. In fact, they are missing all of their molars and only retained their two incisors.

So how does this rodent eat?

The feeding behaviour of the Paucidentomys vermidax is quite unique. As you may have guessed by the loosely translated common name, this particular rodent feeds primarily on the abundant source of worms found in the area. They begin by sucking up the worm like a nice long strand of spaghetti, which makes sense but here is where things get weird. Once they suck up the worm, they use their two incisors to chop up their meal into bite sized pieces. At this point, they will spit the cut up pieces back onto the ground before sucking up each piece individually. I guess this is a good method for ensuring they don’t choke but it seems like a tedious process just to get a meal.

You Don’t Use It….You Lose It

Earlier I mentioned that this discovery illustrates how animals evolved based on their habitat. You see, this worm-eating mouse lives high in the mountains where moss dominates the landscape and as such there are plenty of worms to feast on. After years and years of eating only worms, this rodent lost the need for their grinding molars and only retained their incisors to help them catch and cut up their soft prey. I would imagine if Charles Darwin was still around, he would be having a field day studying the Paucidentomys vermidax.