Meriones unguiculatus
| Mongolian gerbil | |
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| Wild gerbil in Mongolia | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Muridae |
| Subfamily: | Gerbillinae |
| Genus: | Meriones |
| Subgenus: | Pallasiomys |
| Species: | M. unguiculatus |
| Binomial name | |
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Meriones unguiculatus (Milne-Edwards, 1867) |
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Meriones unguiculatus, the Mongolian jird or Mongolian gerbil is a rodent belonging to subfamily Gerbillinae. It is the most widely known species of the gerbil subfamily, and is the usual gerbil species to be kept as a pet or experimental animal, when it is known as the domesticated gerbil. Like the Syrian or golden hamster, it was first brought to the United States in 1954 by Dr. Victor Schwentker for use in research. Forty-four pairs were caught in Mongolia and brought to England. They were described as "squirrel colors... with long furry tails." They are somewhat larger than mice, with a body about 12 cm long (and a tail of similar length), with body mass averaging 50-55 grams in females and 60 grams in males.
The Mongolian gerbil is classed as a "prohibited new organism" under New Zealand's Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996, preventing it from being imported into the country.
Meriones unguiculatus evolved on the semideserts and steppes of Mongolia. There, they developed long legs for jumping and running from predators, teeth to deal with hard seeds and plant matter, and water conservation techniques that allow them to survive in the arid climate, such as the ability to use dry food or stores of fat to generate metabolic water. Mongolian gerbils do not have many natural enemies due to the harsh climate. Most predators are birds of prey or snakes. Mongolian gerbils are diurnal, but return to their burrows for the coldest and hottest parts of the day.
The species M. unguiculatus came originally from Mongolia. Its habitat there is mainly semideserts and steppes. Soil on the steppes is sandy and is covered with grasses, herbs, and shrubs. The steppes have cool, dry winters and hot summers. The temperature can get up to 50 °C (122 °F), but the average temperature for most of the year is around 20 °C (68 °F).
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Wikipedia