What rodent has the longest life span?

The naked mole-rat is native to arid deserts in Eastern Africa. Typical individuals are 3-4 inches long and weigh 1.1-1.2 ounces. Despite their small size, captive naked mole rats have been known to live into their late 20's. This is in direct contrast to mice and rats, rodents of a similar size.

Naked mole-rats live in underground tunnels. They have very little hair, poor eyesight, and are extremely adapted to their life underground where they feed mostly on tubers.

Despite being mammals, they exhibited many traits similar to ants and termites. Females are larger than males. The colony has one "Queen" which has several breeding males as mates. The Queen has the largest body of the females which allows her to reproduce. The rest of the colony, including non-reproducing females, do the bulk of the work in feeding, defending, and maintaining the colony. Upon the Queen's death, another female becomes the Queen. She gains the body mass necessary to brood, becoming the dominant female in the process. Although there is only one reproducing female, all members of the colony assist in raising the pups.

Naked mole rats are small but tough. Living in a dry, hostile environment, they have adapted several ways to thrive in their environment. Their skin is imperviousness to pain. They have a very low metabolic and respiratory rate and as such can survive on minute amounts of oxygen. The naked mole rat is also highly resistant to cancer.