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Animal profile

Naked Mole-Rat

Heterocephalus glaber

MammaliaArid and semi-arid grassland and scrub, in extensive underground burrow systemsLeast Concern

Field profile

The naked mole-rat is a nearly hairless, almost blind subterranean rodent that lives in colonies of dozens to hundreds. A single breeding queen suppresses reproduction in the rest of the colony. Its lips close behind its protruding incisors so it can dig with its teeth without swallowing soil.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-03-31

Naked Mole-Rat

Naked mole-rats live like ants underground

One queen breeds and everyone else digs, forages or defends. This division of labour, called eusociality, is common in insects and vanishingly rare in mammals, and the naked mole-rat was the first mammal shown to live this way.

Read with evidence →

Naked Mole-Rat | Daily Animal Facts