Grants golden mole

Introduction: The Grant's golden mole (Eremitalpa granti) was named after Capt. C.H.B. Grant of the Zoological Department of the Natural History Museum in London. They occur in sand dunes mostly devoid of vegetation with a preference for those that are scattered with clumps of dune-grass. These moles are strictly nocturnal and barn owls are their main enemy. The nightly activities includes foraging of distances of up to 6,000m, but as little as 300m in a riverbed where there is more food available.

Distribution: Confined to the Namib Desert from roughly Walvis Bay south to the Orange River.

Diet: Rather surprisingly Grant's golden mole eat a wide range of food and the web-footed gecko is the largest prey taken. Crickets and the larvae of beetles are frequently eaten. Termites and ants, moths, spiders, legless lizards and bugs are also on the menu.

Colouring: The upper parts of the body are a pale greyish-yellow with a silvery sheen, with paler under parts.

Breeding: A single juvenile is born, probably in underground chambers.

Size: Males and females have a head and body length of ± 8.5cm.