Why is the "Hedgehogs" sub-category under the "Rodents" category when hedgehogs are insectivores?
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ANSWERS: 4
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Good question +5
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Maybe because they look like rodents who like to eat insects.
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Diet: Hedgehogs are classified as insectivores (insect-eater), but have a wide-ranging diet. They eat insects (like beetles, bees, and wasps), crustaceans (like snails), small vertebrates (like mice, birds, lizards, and snakes), eggs, dead meat that they find, and some plant material. They often poke around in the dirt for food. Hedgehogs are nocturnal (most active at night). Rodents are classified by the shape of their teeth but also Merriam Webster says that any small mammals may be classified as rodents.
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"Members of non-rodent orders such as Chiroptera (bats), Scandentia (treeshrews), Insectivora (moles, shrews and hedgehogs), Lagomorpha (hares, rabbits and pikas) and mustelid carnivores such as weasels and mink are sometimes confused with rodents." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodent
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