The
naked mole-rat (
Heterocephalus glaber), also known as the
sand puppy or
desert mole rat, is a burrowing
blesmol native to parts of
East Africa and is the only
species currently classified in the
genus Heterocephalus. The naked mole-rat and the
Damaraland mole-rat are the only known
eusocial mammals. It has a highly unusual set of physical traits that enable it to thrive in an otherwise harsh underground environment; it is the only mammalian
thermoconformer. (A thermoconforming organism adopts the surrounding temperature as its own body temperature, thus avoiding the need for internal thermoregulation).