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<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Taxobox<br />
|name =Russian desman<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Soricomorpha| id = 13700678 | page = 303}}</ref><br />
|status =EN<br />
|trend =down<br />
|status_system =iucn3.1<br />
|status_ref =<ref name=iucn>{{IUCN2012.1|assessor= Tsytsulina, K.|assessor2= Formozov, N.|assessor3= Sheftel, B.|assessor4= Zagorodnyuk, I.|last-assessor-amp= yes|year=2008|id=6506|title=Desmana moschata|downloaded=2012-09-12}} Listed as Vulnerable A2bc+4bc.</ref><br />
|image =Desmana moschata MHNT.INS.10.jpg<br />
|image_width =240px<br />
|regnum =[[Animal]]ia<br />
|phylum =[[Chordate|Chordata]]<br />
|classis =[[Mammal]]ia<br />
|ordo =[[Soricomorpha]]<br />
|familia =[[Talpidae]]<br />
|subfamilia =[[Talpinae]]<br />
|tribus =[[Desmanini]]<br />
|genus ='''''Desmana'''''<br />
|genus_authority =[[Johann Anton Güldenstädt|Güldenstädt]], 1777<br />
|species ='''''D. moschata'''''<br />
|binomial =''Desmana moschata''<br />
|binomial_authority=([[Carolus Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1758)<br />
|range_map =Russian Desman area.png<br />
|range_map_caption =Russian desman range}}<br />
<br />
The '''Russian desman''' (''Desmana moschata'') ({{lang-ru|выхухоль}} ''vykhukhol{{'}}'') is a small [[List of semiaquatic tetrapods|semiaquatic]] mammal that inhabits the [[Volga river|Volga]], [[Don River, Russia|Don]] and [[Ural River]] basins in [[Russia]], [[Ukraine]] and [[Kazakhstan]]. It constructs [[burrow]]s into the banks of [[pond]]s and slow-moving [[stream]]s, but prefers small, overgrown ponds with abundance of [[insect]]s, [[crayfish]] and [[amphibian]]s. The Russian desman often lives in small (usually not related) groups of two to five animals, and appears to have a complex (but largely unstudied) communication and [[presocial|social system]].<br />
<br />
The Russian desman is one of two surviving [[Monotypic taxon|species]] of the tribe ''[[Desmanini]]'', the other being the [[Pyrenean desman]].<ref name=bbc120904/> Despite its outward similarity to [[muskrat]]s (a [[rodent]]), the Russian desman is actually part of the [[mole (animal)|mole]] family [[Talpidae]] in the order [[Soricomorpha]]. Like other moles, it is functionally blind and obtains much of its sensory input from the touch-sensitive [[Eimer's organ]]s at the end of its long, bilobed snout. However, the hind feet are webbed and the tail is laterally flattened&nbsp;—specializations for its aquatic habitat. The body is {{convert|18|to|21|cm|in|abbr=on}} long while the tail is {{convert|17|to|20|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length. Easily the largest species of mole, it weighs {{convert|400|to|520|g|oz|abbr=on}}.{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}<br />
<br />
[[File:Desmana moschata (Harvard University).JPG|thumb|left|''Desmana moschata'']]<br />
Decidedly rich and thick in nature, desman fur used to be highly sought after by the [[fur trade]]. Consequently, the Russian desman is now a protected species under Russian law. However, due to loss of habitat (farming), water pollution, illegal fishing nets, and the introduction of non-native species (e.g., muskrat), population levels continue to decline. In the mid-1970s, an estimated 70,000 desmans were left in the wild; by 2004, the figure was only 35,000.<ref name=bbc060609/> However, in some Russian regions,{{which|date=September 2012}} the number of desmans appears to be increasing.{{citation needed|date=September 2012}}<br />
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==References==<br />
{{Reflist|refs=<br />
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<ref name=bbc060609>{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5065428.stm | title = Russians rally for water mammal | work = [[BBC News]] | date = 9 June 2006 }}</ref><br />
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<ref name=bbc120904>{{cite news | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19260705 | title = Pyrenean desman: On the trail of Europe's weirdest beast | first = Rebecca | last = Morelle | work = [[BBC News]] | date = 4 September 2012 }}</ref><br />
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}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
*{{commons category-inline|Desmana moschata}}<br />
*{{wikispecies-inline|Desmana moschata}}<br />
* ARKive - [http://www.arkive.org/species/GES/mammals/Desmana_moschata/ images and movies of the Russian desman ''(Desmana moschata)'']<br />
<br />
{{Soricomorpha|T.}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Talpidae]]<br />
[[Category:Aquatic mammals|Desman, Russian]]<br />
[[Category:Mammals of Asia]]<br />
[[Category:Mammals of Europe|Desman, Russian]]<br />
[[Category:Mammals of Kazakhstan]]<br />
[[Category:Mammals of Russia]]<br />
[[Category:Fauna of Ukraine]]<br />
[[Category:Endangered animals|Desman, Russian]]<br />
[[Category:Endangered biota of Europe]]<br />
[[Category:Endangered biota of Asia]]<br />
[[Category:Animals described in 1758]]<br />
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]<br />
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{{Soricomorpha-stub}}<br />
{{Russia-stub}}</div>WolfmanSF