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Morphology

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Head and body = 180-220 mm with a tail of 170-215mm. It is the largest of the Talpidae. The Russian desman has a long, grooved snout that is flexible. The tail is scaly, flattened laterally and wide at the base. Scent glands are located at the base of the tail and give off a musky smell. The waterproof brownish/red coat is bi-layered with a dense, short bottom later and a longer, stiff outer later. The forefeet are partially and the hind feet completely webbed. The pads of all feet are fringed with thick hairs for added boost in the water. Many parts of the Russian desman's body are covered with sensory hairs. The Russian desman has the general outward appearance similar to a muskrat (Ondatra).

Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Habitat

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The russian desman inhabits freshwater, slow moving streams, lakes, and ponds. They make their nests on the shoreline under vegetation and roots above the high water line. All entrances lead from the nest to below water.

Aquatic Biomes: lakes and ponds; rivers and streams

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Distribution

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Currently sourthwest Russia in the drainages of the following rivers: Don, Ural, and Volga. The fossil record indicates that they once ranged as far as the British Isles.

Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native )

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Trophic Strategy

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Russian desmans eat aquatic organisms including fish, mollusks, amphibians, crustaceans, and insects.

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Untitled

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There is a general lack of knowledge about this species in all aspects of its biology.

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Behavior

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Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Conservation Status

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Hunting in the late 1800's drastically reduced desman populations. This species is currently listed as endangered and is protected by law. Russian desman populations have also suffered from habitat destructin, competition from introduced species (nutria and muskrats), and water pollution. The Russian desman has been introduced into other river systems outside of its original range and into areas in their original range where they were decimated.

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: vulnerable

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Benefits

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No documented examples.

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Benefits

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The Russian desman was hunted for its fur and musk glands (used in perfumes) until the late 1800's. They are now protected.

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Reproduction

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Russian desmans have the ability to reproduce twice annually. Births are concentrated at the start of summer and fall. Litters of 3-5 young have been documented but little else is known of desman reproduction.

Key Reproductive Features: gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual

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Ellis, E. 1999. "Desmana moschata" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Desmana_moschata.html
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Eric J. Ellis, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
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Biology

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Very little is known about the natural ecology and behaviour of the Russian desman. They build nests on the banks of rivers and appear to be fairly gregarious, as eight individuals have been found in a single nest (2). Females produce two litters a year of three to five young, which are born in spring and autumn (2). Musk glands at the base of the tail are used to mark territories (4). Russian desmans are primarily nocturnal and catch their prey in the water, using their flexible snout to feel along the riverbed and also as a snorkel (3). They can stay underwater for up to five minutes between breaths (4). They eat a range of aquatic organisms such as fish, molluscs, insects, crustaceans and amphibians (2).
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Conservation

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The Russian desman is fully protected today, and the fur trade no longer poses a threat to their survival (3). A number of reserves have been established to protect the last unspoilt wetlands and captive breeding programmes have been set up, although these have so far been unsuccessful (4). Very little is known about natural populations of Russian desmans, and this must be a conservation priority before any effective action plan may be put into practice.
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Description

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Desmans belong to the same family as moles but are adapted for a more aquatic lifestyle. They posses a similar long, cylindrical body, but the tail is longer and flatter than that of a mole and is broadened by a fringe of stiff hairs (3). The legs are also covered in stiff hairs and the thick, waterproof coat is brownish-red in colour, fading to ashy-grey on the underside (2) (3). The snout is long and flexible and the back feet are completely webbed in order to provide propulsion in water (3).
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Habitat

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The Russian desman inhabits lakes, ponds, slow-moving streams and rivers. While a supply of freshwater is essential for this species, it is occasionally also found in brackish waters (2).
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Range

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Fossils from the Pleistocene period show that the Russian desman was found across Europe from southern Britain to the Caspian Sea (3). Today, it occurs in Russia, Belarus, the Ukraine and Kazakhstan, where it occurs in the river basins of the Volga, Don, Dneiper, Ural, Uj and Tobal (2).
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Status

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Classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List 2007 (1).
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Threats

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Russian desmans were massively exploited for their fur and musk glands in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and populations were decimated as a result (2). The delicate wetland ecosystem in which they are found is under threat from draining, pollution and agriculture, and desmans also face competition with introduced nutria (Myocastor coypus) and muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus) (2) (4).
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Russian desman

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The Russian desman (Desmana moschata) (Russian: выхухоль vykhukhol') is a small semiaquatic mammal that inhabits the Volga, Don and Ural River basins in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. It constructs burrows into the banks of ponds and slow-moving streams, but prefers small, overgrown ponds with abundance of insects, crayfish and amphibians. The Russian desman often lives in small groups of two to five animals, that are usually not related, and appears to have a complex (but largely unstudied) communication and social system.

Taxonomy

Russian desman

The Russian desman is one of two surviving species of the tribe Desmanini, the other being the Pyrenean desman.[3] Despite its outward similarity to muskrats (a rodent), the Russian desman is actually part of the mole family Talpidae in the order Eulipotyphla. Like other moles, it is functionally blind and obtains much of its sensory input from the touch-sensitive Eimer's organs at the end of its long, bilobed snout. However, the hind feet are webbed and the tail is laterally flattened —specializations for its aquatic habitat. The body is 18 to 21 cm (7.1 to 8.3 in) long while the tail is 17 to 20 cm (6.7 to 7.9 in) in length. Easily the largest species of mole, it weighs 400 to 520 g (14 to 18 oz). Decidedly rich and thick in nature, desman fur used to be highly sought after by the fur trade. Consequently, the Russian desman is now a protected species under Russian law. However, due to loss of habitat (farming), water pollution, illegal fishing nets, and the introduction of non-native species like muskrat, population levels continue to decline. In the mid-1970s, an estimated 70,000 desmans were left in the wild; by 2004, the figure was only 35,000.[4] However, in some Russian regions, the number of desmans appears to be increasing.

Distribution and habitat

From 2009 to 2011, the Don Basin rivers were searched for Russian desman to evaluate if this environment was sustainable for the species. No evidence was found that the species lives in this area but if so, the population was very small. The limiting factors consist of global factors, interspecific processes, and new immigrating species in the river ecosystem.[5]

Characteristics

Russian desman provide comfort to themselves by grooming. More specifically, scratching with hind feet, washing, biting out of nails, and biting out of fur. The main reasons for these actions are supporting the air layer and heat-insulating properties of fur.[6]

References

  1. ^ Hutterer, R. (2005). "Order Soricomorpha". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 303. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ^ Kennerley, R.; Turvey, S.T. (2016). "Desmana moschata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T6506A22321477. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T6506A22321477.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  3. ^ Morelle, Rebecca (4 September 2012). "Pyrenean desman: On the trail of Europe's weirdest beast". BBC News.
  4. ^ "Russians rally for water mammal". BBC News. 9 June 2006.
  5. ^ Oparina, O. S.; Filinova, E. I.; Sonina, E. E.; Malinina, Y. A.; Oparin, M. L. (2013). "Current status of the Russian desman habitats in small rivers of the Don River Basin in Saratov oblast and the abundance of this species". Biology Bulletin. 40 (10): 854–861. doi:10.1134/S1062359013100075. S2CID 15623225.
  6. ^ Makhotkina, K.A (March 2013). "COMFORT BEHAVIOR OF RUSSIAN DESMAN (DESMEVA MOSCHATA)". Zoologichesky Zhurnal. 92: 313–321 – via Science Citation Index.

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Russian desman: Brief Summary

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The Russian desman (Desmana moschata) (Russian: выхухоль vykhukhol') is a small semiaquatic mammal that inhabits the Volga, Don and Ural River basins in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. It constructs burrows into the banks of ponds and slow-moving streams, but prefers small, overgrown ponds with abundance of insects, crayfish and amphibians. The Russian desman often lives in small groups of two to five animals, that are usually not related, and appears to have a complex (but largely unstudied) communication and social system.

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