The Amazing Kangaroo Rats Osmoregulation

Kangaroo Rats are very interesting animals. The adaptions that they take in order to survive in their dry climate are very fascinating. On this site, I learned that Kangaroo Rats are mostly found in California. Their kidneys help them get rid of waste, without using too much water. Kangaroo Rats ability to create water out of the dry seeds they eat also helps them survive in the desert climate.
On this site, I began to understand the importance of retaining water to organisms that live in the desert, in order to keep their ionic and osmotic balance. Monitoring water loss and limiting heat exposure are some of the key factors of Osmoregulation in Kangaroo Rats.

This is a picture of a Tipton Kangaroo Rat from this website.

Throughout the day, Kangaroo Rats stay inside burrows in order to preserve water. If the temperature of the climate is higher than the temperature of the Kangaroo Rat, then the water loss will increase. However, inside burrows, the temperature is lower than the core temperature of the Kangaroo Rat.
The kidneys of the Kangaroo Rats are one of its coolest adaptions. In order to reduce the waste of water, the kidney “excretes highly concentrated urine resulting in a dry fecal pellet due to rectal absorption of water.” (from this site) So basically kangaroo rats urine is dry, in order to conserve water that is created by the dry seeds that they like to eat.

This video demonstrates another adaption the Kangaroo Rat has that saves it time and energy when gathering seeds.

The Kangaroo Rat is not the only animal that lives in a dry climate to have specialized organs to help with Osmoregulation. Many animals in the desert rely on their organs for Osmoregulation, and without them they couldn’t survive.

Summary of Osmoregulation in Kangaroo Rats:
-urine system
-habitat (affects temperature)
-kidneys

In order to conserve water in dry climates.

Sources:

http://www.desertusa.com/aug96/du_krat.html

http://www.suite101.com/content/osmoregularity-adaptations-to-heat-in-mammals-a119528

Picture Source:

http://www.csub.edu/~dgermano/research.htm