Written Word poetry
Naked Mole Rat By Sarah Clark
Naked mole rat colonies
Are like a hive that’s full of bees, Or termites in a mound addressed Or ants that live inside their nest. One queen, she’s boss, she’s large and mean, A male or three for her harem, The other mole rats do not breed Soldiers, workers, roles decreed, Sterile unless the queen shows weakness Then they start to shed their meekness: Girls fight to death to be queen regnant And be the one who can get pregnant. Patiently prepped to bide their time, The winner gets to stretch her spine! The new queen grows to twice her size, Fertile once the old queen dies, Which might have taken thirty years These mole rats have such long careers! The longest living rodent by far And still more reasons they’re bizarre... They live in tunnels underground, There’s not much air to go around Most creatures die in such conditions But they don’t need to call morticians. In low oxygen they just get colder And have a trick so they get older, (They get older but they do not age, We study them to try and gauge If we can learn from them the answer To curing a disease they don’t get – cancer.) Back to coldness – oh, did you know? Mammals are warm-blooded, right? No! They break this mammal norm And do not keep their own blood warm, Using surrounding heat in the same style As pure cold-blooded reptiles. When oxygen is low or non-existent They remain remarkably resistant, © NatureVolve digital magazine. All rights reserved.
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