A team of scientists from the American University of Georgia Institute of Technology has looked into the issue of square wombat droppings, and the mystery has finally been lifted.
Why are wombat droppings square? This is the question that has kept scientists on their toes for many years. Because, not only are wombats very cute and a protected species, but above all they are the only species in the world to produce droppings of this very particular form.
The mystery was fascinating enough that a team of scientists from the American University of Georgia Institute of Technology decided to take it head on. And the results, after years of research, have finally been published in Soft Matter magazine. The origin of the form of wombat droppings is no longer a secret to us.
Why do wombats make square droppings?
Studying the consistency and shape of wombat stools provides much more information about the lifestyle of these animals than one might think. Through a dissection of a wombat that Patricia Yang | and his team were able to study, the group was able to discover new details about the animals.
First discovery: it’s not their anus that gives their droppings their special shape. ” Wombats don’t have square anuses », We learn on thee site Science Alert, « they are round, like those of other animals ».
Second discovery: their intestines are very, very long for animals of this size. This length (more than ten meters) means that wombats have a very slow digestion: they can take almost two weeks before fully digesting a meal, estimates the study. This means that at the end of these two weeks, the wombats’ droppings are much drier and more solid than ours (the average digestion time of humans varies between 24 hours and 48 hours).
And it is this very long digestion time that gives wombat droppings their distinctive shape, the study concludes. ” Food undergoes over 100,000 contractions in the intestines The scientists write in their study. A process reminiscent of baking a cake, they say. ” At first, when the cake batter is poured into the mold, it has no shape. But as the baking progresses, the edges will solidify, and take the shape of the mold », explains David Hu, who participated in the study. The mystery is lifted.
A discovery that allows us to get to know them better
More than a funny anecdote to read and tell your friends, the story of the square wombats poop has above all allowed scientists to better understand the way of life of these animals, still very little studied. Wombats are a protected species, whose preservation is very important, and knowing why their droppings are square allows us to better understand them.
Indeed, ” wombats don’t have very good vision, and they communicate with each other in part thanks to their droppings », Writes Science Alert. « Because of this, they like to defecate in high places, like rocks or tree trunks, so that their message is more visible. “. A mission that can often be acrobatic, depending on the position and location of these rocks. And, in these cases, having square droppings, which stack better and which scatter less in nature, is a real advantage.
