Mole-Rat Bloodbath At The National Zoo: Report

WASHINGTON, DC -- The National Zoo's naked mole-rat colony finally has a new queen, but it came at a price for several members of the colony, according to a report.

This colony has been engaged in a battle for the throne for the last few months at the National Zoo's Small Mammal House, and zookeeepers have closely watched the drama play out. Naked mole-rats are unusual in that they are a mammal that lives in a colony like bees and ants, where one queen rules and reproduces and all the others serve her.

In October, zoo officials identified one mole-rat larger than the others who appeared to be the favorite. But it wasn't a sure thing. The only way to know for sure is when she has babies.

On Monday, zookeepers found three tiny mole-rat babies that were born to this large mole-rat, meaning she was now the queen, the zoo reported.

But it came at a cost: this colony had 17 mole-rats when it arrived this summer, and now it has only 13, meaning there's been fighting and killing going on, according to a DCist report.

However, now that the new queen has been chosen, zookeepers are hopeful that there will now be peace once again at the Small Mammal House -- for now.

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