Which kind of animal is a "gundi"?

The gundi is a mammal. More specifically, it’s a kind of rodent that is found more or less exclusively in Africa. The first time anyone from the west saw them was in Tripoli in 1774. The gundi rat got their name around this time. While there are five species of gundi that live today, there are many that have gone extinct.

This particular rat has a compact body - they’re only about seventeen or eighteen centimeters long, or eight to nine inches long or so. Due to the desert environment they usually live in, the gundi are geared to water preservation. Due to this, when a female gundi has babies, she makes very little milk. The babies are fully weaned off the mother’s milk by four weeks old.