Desert Rats
JB: This is Earth and Sky. One-seventh of the land on Earth is desert. But not all deserts are hot – some are extremely cold. What makes a desert a desert is what it lacks – water. All deserts are extremely dry.
DB: To survive, desert animals have had to adapt to accommodate for this scarcity of water. Take the kangaroo rat – a small rodent that resembles a gerbil and gets its name because it jumps around like a kangaroo on long, powerful hind legs. Kangaroo rats live in the deserts of the southwestern United States and Mexico. They stay in their underground burrows during the day to keep cool. Kangaroo rats only come out at night to gather seeds – which they stuff into their fur-lined cheeks.
JB: The kangaroo rat never drinks water. Their bodies have the ability to produce tiny amounts of water when the food inside them combines with the oxygen that they breathe. And they don’t waste the water they’ve got. Kangaroo rats don’t sweat or pant the way other animals do to keep cool. They also have specialized kidneys, that allow them to dispose of waste materials with very little output of water. In fact, their urine is so concentrated it crystallizes when it passes from their bodies.
DB: That’s our show for today – made possible by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service. We hope you’ll visit our web site at earthsky.com. We’re Block and Byrd for Earth and Sky.
The following individual was interviewed for today’s show. Our thanks to:
Bruce Anderson
US Forest Service
Gila National Forest
New Mexico
More Resources:
Kangaroo Rats (DesertUSA)
Author’s Notes:
Scientific classification: Kangaroo rats belong to the family Heteromyidae. The Californian species is classified as Dipodomys agilis. Pygmy kangaroo rats belong to the genus Microdipodops.
Additional Teacher Resources
USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Small Mammals of North Dakota, Ord’s Kangaroo Rat
The Ord’s Kangaroo rat is distinguishable from other North Dakota small mammals with its long, bushy-tipped tail and huge hind feet. Ord’s Kangaroo rats are only found in southwestern North Dakota in sandy soils. A brief natural history of the kangaroo rat.
Desert USA: Kangaroo Rats
An extensive scientific overview of the Genus Dipodomys (Kangaroo rat).
Texas Parks & Wildlife, Kids’ Page: Texas Kangaroo Rat
An informative interactive site for children to learn about the natural history, habitat and behavioral patterns of the Kangaroo rat.
Understand Plants and Animals of Western Riverside County: Stephens Kanagroo Rat
A broad overview of the Stephens’ Kangaroo rat covering, description, habitat, behavior, diet, reproduction, distribution, threats, and recovery.
