MAMMALOGY
Mice Found Living at Great Heights
Llullaillaco is one of the highest dormant volcanoes in the world. Located in the Andes in northern Argentina near its border with Chile, the mountain reaches a height of 22,110 feet (6,739 meters). Plants don’t live near the top—which is hardly a shock. It sits in one of the driest regions on Earth. Not to mention, fierce winds are constant, temperatures during the day are below freezing, and oxygen levels are less than half what they are at sea level.
Yet in 2020, researchers found) at Llullaillaco’s summit. It turns out it’s not the only one. In October, researchers announced that they have found several other leaf-eared mice and evidence of them there and on other mountaintops in the region.
