--- title: "Rodents & Lagomorphs (Rodentia & Lagomorpha) | Evolutionary Clade | AnimalTracks.wiki" description: "Continuously growing chisel teeth, explosive reproductive rates, and architectural engineering. Explore 24 species in the Rodents & Lagomorphs evolutionary lineage." image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/icon-512.png" --- # Rodents & Lagomorphs (*Rodentia & Lagomorpha*) > Continuously growing chisel teeth, explosive reproductive rates, and architectural engineering. Representing over forty percent of all mammal species, rodents thrive on every continent except Antarctica. Their defining superpower is a set of open-rooted, self-sharpening incisors coated in hard orange enamel on the front, demanding perpetual gnawing on hard seeds, wood, and plant fibers. Rabbits, hares and pikas are not rodents but lagomorphs, an order of their own with the same ever-growing incisors, so they share this page. ## Key Evolutionary Adaptations - Incisor teeth grow continuously throughout life, self-sharpening as softer inner dentin grinds against hard enamel. - Capybaras and beavers engineer wetlands and dams that reshape entire river basin ecosystems. - High metabolic rates and rapid breeding cycles allow local populations to quickly adapt to shifting biomes. ## Member Species (24 Creatures) - [African Crested Porcupine](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/crested-porcupine/) (*Hystrix cristata*) - **Superpower**: Reverse charge that stabs an attacker with its thicker, shorter quills, backed by a rattling tail and raised quills that can make it look two to three times bigger - **Musical Match**: Nova Twins (Modern Metalcore & Electronic Post-Hardcore) - [Alpine Marmot](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/alpine-marmot/) (*Marmota marmota*) - **Superpower**: Hibernation bouts that start with a 95% cut in metabolic rate, and a small intestine that grows 259% in mass between spring emergence and July - **Musical Match**: Fanfare Ciocărlia (Balkan Brass & Romani Folk Riot) - [American Pika](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/american-pika/) (*Ochotona princeps*) - **Superpower**: Stacks a winter hay pile in summer instead of hibernating - **Musical Match**: Tune-Yards (Art Punk & Experimental Post-Punk) - [Black-Tailed Jackrabbit](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/black-tailed-jackrabbit/) (*Lepus californicus*) - **Superpower**: Zigzags at up to 40 miles per hour, and at a moderate run makes every fourth or fifth leap a high one to look for predators - **Musical Match**: tricot (Math Rock & Midwest Emo) - [Black-Tailed Prairie Dog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/black-tailed-prairie-dog/) (*Cynomys ludovicianus*) - **Superpower**: A broad range of calls, including alarm calls that carry information about predators on the ground, and a jump-yip that seems to set off neighbors in adjacent coteries - **Musical Match**: Madness (Ska-Punk & 2-Tone) - [Brown Rat](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/brown-rat/) (*Rattus norvegicus*) - **Superpower**: Feels its way through total darkness with paws and whiskers, backed by a spectacular sense of smell - **Musical Match**: Nirvana (90s Grunge & Heavy Alt-Rock) - [Capybara](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/capybara/) (*Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris*) - **Superpower**: Underwater breath holding up to five minutes, partially webbed feet for a life half in the water, and birds that pick parasitic insects out of its fur - **Musical Match**: Stan Getz & Astrud Gilberto (Brazilian Bossa Nova & Tropicalia Samba) - [Coypu](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/coypu/) (*Myocastor coypus*) - **Superpower**: Eyes, ears and nostrils all sit on top of the skull, a layout that suits a life spent in the water. - **Musical Match**: Lush (Dream Pop & Shoegaze) - [Domestic Rabbit](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/domestic-rabbit/) (*Oryctolagus cuniculus domesticus*) - **Superpower**: Nearly 360-degree vision from eyes set on the sides of its head - **Musical Match**: The Postal Service (Dream Pop & Shoegaze) - [Eastern Gray Squirrel](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/eastern-gray-squirrel/) (*Sciurus carolinensis*) - **Superpower**: Known to dig decoy caches, covering holes with no food in them, when other squirrels are around - **Musical Match**: Lisa Gerrard (Ethereal Wave & Dream Pop) - [Eurasian Beaver](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/eurasian-beaver/) (*Castor fiber*) - **Superpower**: Hard orange-enameled incisors, valved ears and nostrils that close underwater, and dams that flood former uplands and draw in new birds, fish, and amphibians. - **Musical Match**: Stereolab (Art Punk & Experimental Post-Punk) - [European Hare](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/european-hare/) (*Lepus europaeus*) - **Superpower**: Leverets are born furred and well developed, then spread over a moderately wide area to avoid predation on the whole litter - **Musical Match**: Kate Bush (Art Pop & Baroque Pop) - [Golden Hamster](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/golden-hamster/) (*Mesocricetus auratus*) - **Superpower**: A 16-day pregnancy, the shortest among eutherian (placental) mammals - **Musical Match**: DragonForce (Thrash Metal & Speed Metal) - [Greater Jerboa](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/greater-jerboa/) (*Jaculus orientalis*) - **Superpower**: Bipedal leaping on hind legs about four times the length of its forelimbs; leaps have been measured at up to 3 meters long - **Musical Match**: The Interrupters (Ska-Punk & 2-Tone) - [Groundhog](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/groundhog/) (*Marmota monax*) - **Superpower**: Digs tunnel networks up to 30 feet long, with separate chambers for hibernation - **Musical Match**: Ennio Morricone (Desert Americana & Cinematic Rock) - [Guinea Pig](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/guinea-pig/) (*Cavia porcellus*) - **Superpower**: Popcorning: playful jumps that researchers list among the signs of good welfare - **Musical Match**: Fleet Foxes (Pastoral Folk & Progressive Bluegrass) - [House Mouse](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/house-mouse/) (*Mus musculus*) - **Superpower**: Males sing ultrasonic songs when they smell a female - **Musical Match**: Depeche Mode (Coldwave & Glacial Post-Punk) - [Long-Tailed Chinchilla](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/long-tailed-chinchilla/) (*Chinchilla lanigera*) - **Superpower**: Fur with up to 60 hairs growing from one follicle - **Musical Match**: Lush (Dream Pop & Shoegaze) - [Malabar Giant Squirrel](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/malabar-giant-squirrel/) (*Ratufa indica*) - **Superpower**: Leaps of six meters or more between trees, and eagle-sized nests of leaves and twigs - **Musical Match**: Polyphia (Math Rock & Instrumental Virtuoso) - [Muskrat](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/muskrat/) (*Ondatra zibethicus*) - **Superpower**: Dense fur that traps air for insulation and buoyancy - **Musical Match**: Róisín Murphy (Classic Funk, Soul & Disco) - [Naked Mole-Rat](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/naked-mole-rat/) (*Heterocephalus glaber*) - **Superpower**: High-molecular-mass hyaluronan that triggers early contact inhibition, stopping cell division at a much lower density than in mouse cells - **Musical Match**: Delta Sleep (Math Rock & Midwest Emo) - [North American Beaver](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/north-american-beaver/) (*Castor canadensis*) - **Superpower**: Self-sharpening, iron-strengthened incisors that keep growing throughout its life and can cut through a finger-thick sapling in one bite. - **Musical Match**: Béla Fleck (Pastoral Folk & Progressive Bluegrass) - [Norway Lemming](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/norway-lemming/) (*Lemmus lemmus*) - **Superpower**: Aposematic (warning) coloration and behavior - **Musical Match**: Sam Sparro (2000s Pop & R&B Anthem) - [Red Squirrel](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-squirrel/) (*Sciurus vulgaris*) - **Superpower**: Double-jointed ankles for moving up and down trees with ease, plus a jump of more than two metres. - **Musical Match**: Donovan (Pastoral Folk & Progressive Bluegrass) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://animaltracks.wiki/clades/rodents/#collection", "name": "Rodents & Lagomorphs (Rodentia & Lagomorpha)", "description": "Continuously growing chisel teeth, explosive reproductive rates, and architectural engineering.", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/clades/rodents/", "mainEntity": { "@type": "ItemList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "African Crested Porcupine", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/crested-porcupine/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Alpine Marmot", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/alpine-marmot/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "American Pika", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/american-pika/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Black-Tailed Jackrabbit", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/black-tailed-jackrabbit/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Black-Tailed Prairie Dog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/black-tailed-prairie-dog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "name": "Brown Rat", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/brown-rat/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "name": "Capybara", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/capybara/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "name": "Coypu", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/coypu/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "name": "Domestic Rabbit", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/domestic-rabbit/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "name": "Eastern Gray Squirrel", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/eastern-gray-squirrel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "name": "Eurasian Beaver", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/eurasian-beaver/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "name": "European Hare", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/european-hare/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 13, "name": "Golden Hamster", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/golden-hamster/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 14, "name": "Greater Jerboa", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/greater-jerboa/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 15, "name": "Groundhog", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/groundhog/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 16, "name": "Guinea Pig", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/guinea-pig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 17, "name": "House Mouse", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/house-mouse/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 18, "name": "Long-Tailed Chinchilla", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/long-tailed-chinchilla/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 19, "name": "Malabar Giant Squirrel", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/malabar-giant-squirrel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 20, "name": "Muskrat", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/muskrat/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 21, "name": "Naked Mole-Rat", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/naked-mole-rat/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 22, "name": "North American Beaver", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/north-american-beaver/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 23, "name": "Norway Lemming", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/norway-lemming/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 24, "name": "Red Squirrel", "url": "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/red-squirrel/" } ] } } ] } ```