Naked Mole Rat Cam

Our naked mole rat exhibit is located just outside the entrance to the Tropical Butterfly House adjacent to the Insect Village. Below are some facts about these curious creatures.

• The animals may be very motionless but they are not dead. Their resting metabolism is much lower than that of other mammals, because they do not thermoregulate. So they may breathe slowly and appear not to be breathing at all.
• Naked mole rats live in underground tunnels and chambers. They are used to crowded conditions. Sometimes the chamber you are viewing will be full of animals, but don't worry. They are not getting trampled. This is how they like to sleep.
• Naked mole rats are not quite blind but vision is one of their less important senses. As long as their lighting is constant, they adapt well to it. When lights go on or off abruptly they may find it stressful.
• Naked mole rats' teeth stick out way past their gums. This means they look much scarier than they really are. They have very strong jaws, but they would only bite a person or another animal under very unusual conditions. They use their teeth to dig, chew, and carry their babies, which they can do very gently.
• The dark markings you see on the mole rats are tattoos. The ink is for a cause. Each animal has a unique set of markings that tells us its sex, when it was born and to which queen. Because their skin is pink and hairless, the markings are quite conspicuous. Learn More

You can learn more about naked mole rats on Pacific Science Center's Life Sciences Blog.