'Brain-eating monster' is less than 20cm long and eats 3,000 mice every year?

Not long ago, three zoologists accidentally discovered a narrow cave during surveys in the forests of Xinjiang. What shocked them was that inside the cave there were a series of rat corpses and not only that, all of them had their heads separated from their bodies and their brains had been corroded.

The question is: What animal is capable of such brutality? To clarify the truth and find the real culprit of the "brain eating" incidents, scientists decided to wait outside the cave. After two days of waiting, they finally saw the "unsub".

Surprisingly, this "brain-eating monster" is less than 20cm long and looks quite cute, seemingly harmless. Through careful observation, they realized that this was a rare wild white-bellied lizard. So, why do white-bellied possums eat rat brains, and how strong is their fighting power?

The white-bellied weasel (also known as the brown weasel) is the smallest species in the weasel family and also the smallest species in the carnivore order. This weasel is only about 12 - 25cm long and weighs about 40 - 70 grams. The white-bellied marmot looks innocent and adorable with its short, thick fur. Their fur color changes with the seasons. In summer, the fur on the back, legs and tail turns coffee brown, while the belly is white, forming a distinct border on the side of the body between the two colors. In winter, the entire body turns pure white, looking very attractive. The main food of the white-bellied philodendron is mice, and sometimes eats small birds, spiders and insects.

Why did the white-bellied philodendron become a "brain-eating monster"? It is known that the white-bellied philosopher is not only a "supermodel" of the green forest but also a top "foodie". They have a body fat content of less than 5% and a metabolic rate 2-3 times that of animals of the same size. Therefore, white-bellied elms need to consume food equal to 40% of their body weight every day to maintain energy. If they lack food, they can starve to death, so white-bellied marmots are always on the move, hunting or on the hunt. In a year, they can destroy more than 3,000 rats, an impressive number.

The important thing is, to absorb more nutrients, white-bellied elms often eat the rat brain first, then the fat. If they are full, they will drag the rest into their burrows for storage. Even though the cave is full of food, the white-bellied elk still keeps chasing, becoming the terror of the forest mice, truly the "devil" in the forest.

Lesley Montoya

Update 02 April 2024