moles

Silken, rich and fragrant with spices, Guelaguetza’s moles are a thing of beauty in all their colors and flavors.

There’s Claro, an Oaxacan restaurant that makes everything by hand, including the masa, cheese, chorizo and moles.

But you probably wouldn’t see one: While the animals are plentiful, sightings remain extremely rare because northern marsupial moles live in tunnels beneath sand dunes, navigating them with a swimming-like motion using flipper-like front feet.

Senior co-authors Warren and Martin Fischer originally developed the technique to analyze pigments in human tissue, not works of art -- to inspect skin moles for signs of cancer.

Sightings of marsupial moles usually occur only a few times each decade.