A rat king is formed when a number of rats become tied together by their tails. Most rat kings consist of a tangled mass of between 5 - 10 rats, although rat kings comprised of up to 32 rats have been reliably recorded.Rat kings are thought to be formed when the tails of young rats become glued together by feces and urine while in the nest. The knots thus formed are then pulled tighter when the rats attempt to extricate themselves. Sometimes rat kings perish due to their inability to forage effectively. However, they are sometimes also fed by other family members.
Attempts to induce rat kings in the laboratory by tying the tails of live rats together have been unsuccessful to the extent that the results look nothing like real kings. However, gluing the tails of rats together has been more successful. Although initially not knotted, the rats themselves struggle until a true knot is formed.(originally posted 3.9.08)
1 comment:
i can honestly say i have learned something new today.
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