You and I probably see rodents all around us,day and night.We know them as rats
and mice,squirrels and chipmunks,woodchucks and prairie dogs.They live in more land
areas than any other animal family.In forests and deserts,on farmlands and in cities.
Rodents have a single pair of upper and lower incisors (teeth adapted for cutting).
Incisors can grasp,hold,and pierce through objects but are mainly used to gnaw food.
Rodents teeth never stop growing so they must gnaw on things everyday.
Many rodents,just like bears,hibernate.Some hibernate for short periods of time
while others may hibernate for nine months.Rodents live in many different places.Some
live in trees,some live on cliffs under and behind rocks,and some dig burrows
underground.
Many people condemn rodents because they feel rodents are a nuisance.They eat our
crops and many of them tend to carry fleas,lice,and other parasites that spread disease
to humans and other animals.But these animals are also very important.They are a major
part of the animal kingdoms food chain.Without rodents many other animal species may
exist.The order of rodents consists of many different families but I am only going to
briefly name a few.
Family Sciuridae - This family of rodents gets its name from
the word Sciuridae which means "shadow-tail".These animals nest in trees,dig burrows,
and tunnel into mountainsides.All species of this family have four toes on their front
feet and five on their hind feet.Their eyes set high on their heads which allows them
to see things the same way we see things through a pariscope.These animals eat seeds,
nuts,grasses,insects,and some even raid bird nests.Some examples of Sciuridaes would
include chipmunks,woodchucks(or ground hogs),squirrels,and the prairie dog
Jon's World o' Squirrels* Excellent site about my favorite rodent...The Squirrel *
The Chipmunk Place
Woodchucks
Family Castoridae - There is only one species of animal that
belongs to this family.That animal is the beaver,the landscaper of the animal kingdom.
Beavers are the biggest animal of all the rodent species.On average they grow to be
three to four feet long and weigh between forty and sixty pounds.They have a giant pair
of incisors which have chisel sharp edges.These incisors are used to gnaw or cut down
trees.Its tail is around sixteen inches long and is used as a rudder to help guide the
beaver while swimming and it is used to warn other beavers of danger when it is slapped
on the water.Beavers spend half of their time in the water making dams to create their
own habitat:a beaver pond.To beavers,a pond is security,and they seldom venture far from
its shore.Beavers constantly inspect and repair their dams since the dam serves as their
home.Lumberman save beaver ponds drown good timber,but they also provide water to fight
forest fires.And conservationists say the dams and ponds help control flooding.
Family Cricetidae - The Cricetidae or "hamster-like" family
consists of about 550 species of rodents making the the largest rodent family.These
rodents live on evey continent except Australia and Antactica.They are found in any areas
that is not covered year-round by snow or ice.All of these rodents have sixteen teeth
and mostly eat seeds and vegetables.But some are carnivorous.Muskrats,for example,eat
fish,and grasshopper mice eat insects.Some members of this rodent family would include
hamsters,voles,lemmings,the harvest mouse,the deer mouse,and the muskrat.
Family Erethizontidae - This family belongs to the porcupine.
There are eight different species of porcupines.Seven are found in southern Mexico
through northern South America.The eighth is the porcupine found in the United States
and Canada.Porcupines are slow moving animals that have feet well adapted for climbing.
Pocupines climb tall trees to reach twigs and buds to eat.A porcupine may spend several
days in the same tree,gnawing so much bark that the tree is certain to die.Wooly fur
covers the porcupines body.Within this fur are loosely attached quills,about 30,000
quills to be exact.Each quill is controlled by a seperate muscle.The tips of the quills,
some as long as five inches long,are covered by tiny barbs.If a predetor were to have
the misfortune of getting quills stuck into its body it may die.The predetor cannot pull
out the barbed quills,which may work deeper into its body until they lethally enter a
vital organ.The quills are also hollow which enables a porcupine to swim when necessary.
The quills are surrounded by coarce hairs,or "guard hairs" eight to ten inches long,
which give porcupines their shaggy look.Porcupines are rather large rodents.In fact only
the beaver is bigger.A porcupine averages thirty-six inches in length and weighs about
twenty pounds.They sleep all day in logs or tree nests and at night they wander around
in search of food.Although a porcupine has very bad eye sight,it has a very keen sense of
hearing and smell.Having such a good sense of hearing and smell,along with being protected
by quills,the porcupine generally lives a peaceful life.
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