WEBVTT - Animalia Stupendium: Moles

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff to blow your mind, a production of iHeartRadio.

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<v Speaker 2>Welcome to Animalia Stupendium. My name is Argomandanes, wizard in

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<v Speaker 2>exile the Triumvirate didn't quite work out, inventor of several

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<v Speaker 2>common cants and tireless creature chronicler. However, mere monsters hold

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<v Speaker 2>no mystery for me. These days. Dragons alas our drab

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<v Speaker 2>m basilisks are boring. Instead, I turn my attention once

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<v Speaker 2>more to the strange fauna of a land called Earth.

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<v Speaker 2>Travel with me, a gentle reader, as we consider the.

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<v Speaker 3>Mole common name mole scientific classification. Various pieces of the

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<v Speaker 3>family talpa day frequency and range throughout North America and Eurasia.

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<v Speaker 3>Size small, but with varying body sizes depending on species,

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<v Speaker 3>diet insects, molluscs, and worms depending on species. Treasure hoard

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<v Speaker 3>for some species earthworm larders challenge rating two.

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<v Speaker 2>The family Talpidae contains a great many moles and even

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<v Speaker 2>the semi aquatic desmond. While desmonds swim in the water

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<v Speaker 2>to hunt their mostly insect prey, the rest of their

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<v Speaker 2>talpid kin swim through the ground. Yes, the mole or

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<v Speaker 2>the mold warps as they were once known among the earthlings,

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<v Speaker 2>are highly evolved for burrowing life beneath the soil, where

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<v Speaker 2>they thrive mostly on worms and insects. They are, in

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<v Speaker 2>fact the super predator of earthworms, periodically driving them to

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<v Speaker 2>the surface, where the worms will sooner take their chances

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<v Speaker 2>with swooping birds than the all consuming snout of the mole.

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<v Speaker 2>Their high metabolism requires them to eat NonStop day and night,

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<v Speaker 2>digging upwards of one hundred feet of tunnels in a

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<v Speaker 2>single day as they gobble up considerable portions of their

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<v Speaker 2>body weight in worms or other creatures each day. The

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<v Speaker 2>mole's saliva contains a special worm paralyzing toxin toxin damage,

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<v Speaker 2>which allows them to paralyze surplus prey and store them

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<v Speaker 2>away in a grizzly larder for later consumption. During leaner times,

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<v Speaker 2>these larders may contain a thousand worms. These subterranean or

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<v Speaker 2>fossorial moles boast per fit bodies for their lifestyle, short, cylindrical,

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<v Speaker 2>and their velvety fur can lie in either direction, depending

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<v Speaker 2>on which direction the creature is tunneled is you should

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<v Speaker 2>never pedimal, but it would not be possible to pet

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<v Speaker 2>their fur in the wrong direction. If you did. Additionally,

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<v Speaker 2>their foreclaws are long and powerful for digging strokes, and

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<v Speaker 2>each four par boasts an extra thumb called a prepolyx.

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<v Speaker 2>Their eyes are small and their vision poor, sure enough,

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<v Speaker 2>but theirs is not a realm of sight, but of

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<v Speaker 2>smell and touch. We see this especially with the star

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<v Speaker 2>nosed moles, so named for the twenty two hairless tentacle

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<v Speaker 2>like rays that fan out around their nostrils, constantly questing,

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<v Speaker 2>questing for worms, insects, and even fish. For the star

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<v Speaker 2>nosed mole may also take to the water and is

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<v Speaker 2>a strong swimmer with an excellent sense of smell, but

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<v Speaker 2>its signature nose provides it with a sense of touch

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<v Speaker 2>beyond that of any other mammal. While the human hand

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<v Speaker 2>boasts a mere seventeen thousand nerve endings, the star nosed

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<v Speaker 2>mole puts this to shame with something on the order

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<v Speaker 2>of a hundred thousand nerve endings in the microscopic touch

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<v Speaker 2>organs called IMA's organs that cover the rays of its

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<v Speaker 2>starry snout, simply astonishing. There is also the not so

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<v Speaker 2>small a matter of how to breathe. Underground moles have

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<v Speaker 2>evolved specialized hemoglobin proteins that, through one method or another,

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<v Speaker 2>are exceedingly good at binding with oxygen. Furthermore, they're better

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<v Speaker 2>able to make use of the oxygen that they get

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<v Speaker 2>while remaining more tall currant of elevated carbon dioxide levels

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<v Speaker 2>beneath the soil. They have truly taken to the soil

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<v Speaker 2>like well a fish to water. Gardeners, do not tremble

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<v Speaker 2>at the sight of their wake in your topsoil, but

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<v Speaker 2>rejoice that you are in the presence of such splendid

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<v Speaker 2>form and function. Now there are more mysteries concerning moles

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<v Speaker 2>to consider, But for now I must retire my wizard's

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<v Speaker 2>quill and allow my familiars some respite. But I shall

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<v Speaker 2>return with even more wonders of the natural world.

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<v Speaker 4>Hi, this is Robert Lamb. Thanks to the wizard Agromandanese

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<v Speaker 4>once more for joining us in this episode. Sources for

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<v Speaker 4>this episode included why do star No's moles have a

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<v Speaker 4>hand on their face? By Holly Cheating Welsh for the

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<v Speaker 4>Natural History Museum, the website Animal Diverse Web Science Shock

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<v Speaker 4>Burrowing moles breathe easily by Dolly J. Krishnaswami, Science dot Org.

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<v Speaker 4>How the mole got its twelve Fingers, University of Zurich

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<v Speaker 4>twenty eleven and the National Wildlife Federation. Thanks as always

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<v Speaker 4>to the excellent JJ Possway for producing this episode. If

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<v Speaker 4>you wish to contact Argo Mandanese with recommendations for future

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<v Speaker 4>episodes or feedback, you can send an email to contact

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<v Speaker 4>at stuff to Blow your Mind dot com.

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff to Blow Your Mind is production of iHeartRadio. For

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