Packrat vs pods review8/31/2023 ![]() ![]() The Sonoran Desert doesn’t have ocean sediment or ice cores to record its past, but it does have middens. The objects are so protected in this package that packrats unknowingly create time capsules of our past! The seeds, plant parts, animal bones, and pollen fragments that they save give us a view of bygone eras. When they pee on things, it ensconces them in an amber-like fluid which then crystallizes. Packrat pee is incredibly viscous and thick. Wow, what workmanship! Packrats are the original Sonoran Desert Scientists Some packrat houses are so well constructed and protected that they have survived and been continuously occupied for thousands of years. They even protect it with cholla pieces and dog poop! The house has many rooms in it, including the nest (bedroom) and midden (toilet). These amazing architects construct homes made out of sticks, branches, and rocks. Packrats live in a…house, midden, or nest? Thus, they are considered not just ecological engineers, but a keystone species as well. In areas with a packrat presence, the biodiversity of animals is higher. insects and spiders), and even tortoises do not mind cohabitation with these rodents as their houses are climate controlled and well protected. Room for rent! Packrat homes house other animals. Packrats are an essential part of the food web. Those animals rely on these fuzzy furballs for a full belly. They not only help aerate soil, but their poop even helps fertilize the seeds!Īdditionally, packrats are food for bobcats, coyotes, owls, hawks and snakes. ![]() Packrats eat plant parts and seeds, and thus are seed and cactus dispersers (they help plants get started in new places). ![]() Packrats are absolutely vital to a healthy desert ecosystem. ![]()
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