Short tailed field vole Microtus agrestis, darkfield photomicrograph
Hair is a complex structure that is epidermal in origin. Animal hair is constructed out of proteins "composed of thousands of amino acids linked together in a highly organized arrangement and sequence" (Saferstein, 2002, p. 205). Hair is held in place below the epidermis by a root situated in a shaft surrounded by a hair follicle. The hair follicle consists of an epidermal and a dermal root sheath. One or more sebaceous glands also exist in the hair follicle and serve to secrete oil into the space between the shaft and the surrounding tissues. This oil lubricates the area and traps moisture, a function that benefits both the hair and the skin. A vole is a small rodent resembling a mouse but with a stouter body, a shorter, hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, smaller ears and eyes, and differently formed molars (high-crowned and with angular cusps instead of low-crowned and with rounded cusps). There are approximately 155 species of voles. They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America. Vole species form the subfamily Arvicolinae with the lemmings and the muskrats.
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Photo credit: © Scenics & Science / Alamy / Afripics
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Keywords: agrestis, burrow, darkfield, field, micrograph, microscope, microtus, photomicrograph, rodent, short, tailed, vole
