Chrysochloridae is the golden mole family, the only family in the suborder Chrysochloridea within the order Afrosoricida, endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. It comprises twenty one species across ten living genera, including Eremitalpa, Chrysochloris, and Amblysomus. Golden moles are small, insectivorous, burrowing mammals with non-functional eyes covered by fur, dense fur with an iridescent sheen, powerful digging claws on the forelimbs, and an enlarged leathery nasal pad; despite resembling true moles, they are taxonomically distinct, the similarity a result of convergent evolution.
Facts
Taxonomic Rank Sources
1. Wikipedia: Golden mole
WikipediaIntroductionQuote, Introduction
They belong to the family Chrysochloridae (the only family in the suborder Chrysochloridea) and as such they are taxonomically distinct from the true moles, family Talpidae, and other mole-like families, all of which, to various degrees, they resemble as a result of evolutionary convergence.
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