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Rodents of Unusual Size

Posted by michael on from the world's-largest-hamster-wheel dept.

lowy writes "The New York Times has a story (free registration, blah, blah) reporting that paleontologists are claiming they have a nearly complete skeleton of a 1500-pound distant relative of the guinea pig. Would Westley and Buttercup have made it through the Fire Swamp if the R.O.U.S's were this big?"

4 of 51 comments (clear)

  1. Unusual size by morcheeba · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Ha ha! I just watched that movie and then heard the story on NPR, and didn't make the connection.

    They said that the legs of the huge creature were built like the legs of other rodents - designed for burrowing, and not for running. They said that usually animals have one of two escape mechanisms - either burrow (like mice), or run (like most big creatures). They thought this guy would be evolutionary challenged because there aren't many holes big enough for a 6-foot rat to escape into. (lame richard gere jokes aside)

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  2. In Related News by Samus · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The US Olympic commitee has ordered Nebraska Wesleyan University to stop using the name Rat Olympics in their annual behavioral learning rat competition because it infringes on their name. Seems to me that name olympics far preceeds even this countries founding. The USOC has gone too far yet again.

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  3. Capybara anecdote by ballpoint · · Score: 3, Interesting
    The capybara is a pretty big rodent too.

    I saw and ate them when I was in Venezuela. Driving around we went to a steak house. Our ordering of a big steak was met with despise from the waiter. Oh yes, it was Good Friday and, Venezuela being a very Catholic country, they didn't want to serve meat.

    Capybara was ok, however. They consider it to be a fish since it lives in swamps.

    I didn't like it too much though; the meat is rather tasteless and fibery.

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  4. Giant Rats at Chernobyl already! by jameskojiro · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I heard they already have rats that are bigger than normal near the old Chernobyl Nuclear power plant in Russia. They are no where near the size as the ones in the article, but they are a little bigger than the neighboring rats due to Nuclear contamination. Is this where we are heading if there ever is a nuclear war?

    700Kg rats?

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    Tsukasa: All I really want, is to be left alone...