Aardvark and other insectivores

[BorneanTiger]

Hero shrews or armored shrews (Scutisorex somereni), located in D. R. Congo, have the most extreme spines in nature: https://api.nationalgeographic.com/distr...yMW1rhK8Oo, https://www.sciencenews.org/article/hero...ine-mammal

Credit: Julian Kerbis Peterhans

*This image is copyright of its original author

The spine of a hero shrew (Scutisorex somereni) features interlocking vertebrae (right), unlike the more typical spine of the African giant shrew (Crocidura olivieri) (left). Credit: S. Smith

*This image is copyright of its original author

A cross section of the sixth lumbar vertebra of a hero shrew, taken perpendicularly across the spine, reveals the vertebra’s many projections on the left and right sides (shown as an array of small ovals) that can interlace with neighbouring vertebrae’s projections upon compression. This turns the spine into a tough, rigid unit rather than a set of bendy segments. Credit: S. Smith

*This image is copyright of its original author

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