Ep.33 Do rats have flexible skeletons?

Surely you’re curious or at least amused by the question we’re answering today in the series “Myth or Fact”: Do rats have flexible skeletons? It’s an interesting piece of information that we found on the internet, and if you want to know the answer, we invite you to follow Mr. Alexandru Vladimirescu, PhD in biology and head of the medical entomology laboratory at the Cantacuzino Institute.

What are you curious about? Write us in the comments and we’ll ask the specialist for you!

Interview transcript

We discuss, with our specialist, the myths received from you on our Facebook page, INFODDDD. One of them goes like this: Rats have flexible skeletons that allow them to cross particularly narrow spaces. They also have fantastic balance, they can walk on cables or ropes. Mr. Vladimirescu, is this myth or fact?

Yes, it is… what can I tell you! They’re ordinary mammals, banal even. Their skeleton has no special modifications that allow them to make themselves smaller or bigger. The point is, that’s not what characterizes them, it’s the shape of the body which is conical, the fat layer, which of course is flexible and easily modified when they pass through a smaller hole and if they manage to pass through that area, they pass through, if say the body surface area, the volume in the end, is larger, they don’t, so it’s somewhat of a myth. Yes, indeed, they do have climbing abilities and they do have those claws, they can easily climb up pipes, thicker or thinner wires and that’s a reality.

Does their balance also come from their body shape?

No, their balance comes from behavior and training.