Sometimes we get a coup d’oeil of exceedingly rarefied animal that ca n’t fail to enthrall . From underwater cuties like thedumbo octopusto a rarepink elephant calfin South Africa , catch a glimpse of something that special fetch an extra sense of joy . That is exactly what happened to the Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa ( KJ ) Martu rangers in Australia as they caught sight of a glorious golden marsupial mole .
KJ Martu Rangers are the Traditional Custodians of a vast country in the Western Desert of the Pilbara in Australia . Martu Country is an arid ecosystem that cover 13.6 million hectares across northwestern Australia .
This is the second sighting of an elusive Kakarratul ( marsupial mole ) in just six months , write the KJ Martu Rangers on theirFacebook page . Kakarratul ( Notoryctes caurinus ) live in George Sand dunes and expend almost their entire biography underground , only rarely venturing up to the surface . These diminutive critter onlymeasure12 - 16 cm ( 4.7 -6.3 inches ) .
The KJ Martu Rangers protect the ecosystem of the Western Desert of the Pilbara.Image Courtesy of the Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa (KJ) Martu Rangers.
These palm - sized little mole effectively “ swim ” through the George Sand and do n’t make any empty burrow behind them – rather , they practice their nose and forehead as a ram to burrow their manner through . These moles eat on insects that they find within the grit , mostly ants and beetle larvae , writesthe IUCN .
While the mole are make out to be marsupials and specimen have prove up in museum collecting , almost nothing is get laid about their reproductive habits or life because they are so elusive .
The ranger mix their pujiman ( traditional ) knowledge with modernistic preservation techniques to look after some of the most threatened metal money in this orbit , include the marsupial mole and thenight parrot , thenorthern quoll , and the Pilbara leafage - nosed squash racket .
These Australia Kakarratul might have delicious light-haired locks and resemble wimp nugget wearing Legolas wigs , but they are not the only golden moles out there . In an incredible feat of convergent evolution , South Africa is also home to a chicken nugget - shaped counterspy that also swims through the Baroness Dudevant dunes . TheDe Winton ’s golden molewas rediscover deep last year after not being seen for 80 years .
