An integral part of nature is the richest fauna of our planet. Our smaller brothers, various warm-blooded mammals, live in forests, steppes and deserts. They need a careful attitude to themselves and protection from poachers. Only in this case, subsequent generations will be able to contemplate the amazing fauna of the Earth.
Today we will talk about jerboa - one of the funniest representatives of the largest detachment of mammals "rodents".
Habitat
Jerboa is a fairly large family of rodents; live on almost all continents. Namely in the steppes, semi-deserts and deserts of the Palearctic. The latter refers to the following geographical regions:
- South of Europe.
- Asia north of the Himalayas, excluding the Arabian Peninsula.
- North Africa all the way to southern Sahara.
This section succinctly answers the question of where the jerboa lives.
Appearance
Jerboa is a small rodent that reaches a length of 4 to 25 centimeters (depending on species). It features a small body and a long tail with a tassel. The funny thing is that the tail is sometimes longer than the body. The brush performs the function of a rudder when jumping long - in such a funny way the animal moves.
The jerboa's muzzle is rounded down. Two large eyes and two long ears stand out clearly on it. The rodent's teeth are also interesting: their number varies from 16 to 18 pieces depending on the species, but the sharpness of the fangs is inherent in all representatives of this family.
The color of the rodent is represented by a rich palette of brown - from copper to beige. Depends on the color of the soil of that natural zone, which the animal chose for life. For example, a steppe jerboa will have a light brown coat. The color will exactly match the color of the soil inherent in this strip. The jerboa in the desert will be redder to merge with the endless sands extending beyond the horizon.
Wise nature disposed in this way in order to protect the small animal from birds of prey.
Strengths and weaknesses of jerboas
Description of jerboa is unthinkable without focusing on its interesting external features.
These rodents have the following organs:
- Hind legs. All 26 species of jerboas have very strong hind legs. It is with their help that the animal can jump so fast and fun.
- Ears - large and long, clearly picking up all the sounds of a deserted starry night.
- Mustache - up to ankle length. The most important organ of touch of these small mammals.
It is the above organs that are vital for jerboas. Due to the ears and mustache, the small animal feels an approaching predator, and strong legs help the rodent to quickly escape into a cozy mink.
But vision and scent are poorly developed in jerboas.
Gourmet Rat Similarity
A typical jerbo is surprisingly similar to the funny animated hero Ratatouille. He is just as quick, smart and spontaneous. Watching the life of this rodent is no less interesting than watching the fascinating cartoon of Brad Byrd.
By the way, we strongly recommend everyone to watch "Ratatouille" in the original. The film is full of kindness, subtle humor and culinary delights. Gourmets will be delighted!
Nimble and fearful desert night creature
This chapter tells about the life of jerboas in the wild. These amazing rodents lead a certain lifestyle, consider its features:
- Isolation. Jerboas walk on their own, and come together only for the reproduction of offspring.
- Awake at night, and rest in the mink during the day.
- They do not like to take risks. A small and nimble animal will never get out of his home unnecessarily, because he knows how dangerous and cruel the animal world is.
- They are excellent diggers. This skill is necessary for building underground dwellings. Very often the rodent collides with compacted soil, which you can’t rake with your front paws. In this case, sharp front fangs are used. In this example, one can again see how harmonious and correct Mother Nature is.
Underground dwellings
These little rodents are great builders and just love to build cozy minks. Jerboas build underground dwellings using sharp fangs and powerful forelegs. They break through underground passages, sometimes reaching up to one and a half to two meters in depth. It is at this distance that the warm nests of jerboas are located. They are made of wool, fluff, moss and dry leaves. A jerboa is building a cozy cloister, the photo only confirms this.
Dwellings at jerboas are:
The second, in turn, are divided into:
Temporary dwellings of jerboas are simpler and located at a shallow depth. The constant burrow, by contrast, is deep. The course to it can have a length of up to six meters, also, in addition to the main labyrinth, the rodent must make additional branches for exit.
Science also knows cases of jerboa in the abandoned gopher minks.
Winter dormouse and spring lovelace
All jerboas are characterized by hibernation. They fall into it with the onset of the first autumn cold weather (around October). Rodents rest in minks for about four months. True, sometimes they wake up for a short period of time. As a rule, this is due to a sharp warming.
Having thoroughly slept and assimilated the calories accumulated over the summer, the jerboa is ready for reproduction. It is spring - the mating season for these rodents. It ends with a 25-day pregnancy of the female. On average, from 3 to 6 cubs are born. One and a half months, small rodents enjoy the care of their mother. At the end of this period, they leave their native nests and go to adulthood.
What does jerboa eat in the desert?
These rodents are omnivores. But the greatest preference is given to food of plant origin. The true goodies are the various seeds, shoots and roots of plants. The rodent will not refuse from the nutritious seeds of watermelons, melons and cereals. If, during the night, the rodent was unable to find a life-giving oasis with green vegetation, it may well be content with insects and their larvae.
Another interesting fact is that jerboa does not drink water at all. He has enough juices of those plants that he eats. This section answers the question of what jerboa in the desert eats.
Predators and natural facts that destroy jerboas
It is clear that desert animals can be dangerous. Jerboa should be avoided:
- Reptiles.
- Large mammals.
- Birds of prey (eagles and hawks).
Also, the anthropogenic factor greatly affects the jerboa population. With the development of new natural areas by humans (for example, the construction of high-rise buildings), the habitat of rodents decreases.
This once again suggests that a person must reckon with the surrounding fauna.
Types of jerboas
Lizards, snakes, steppe wolves and tropical insects are typical desert animals. Jerboa is also a resident of these places.
Scientists have 26 different species of these mammals (where jerboa lives, read on). On the territory of our country, these rodents live in the steppes and semi-deserts of southern Siberia. Their habitat covers the Altai Territory, Transbaikalia and the southern regions of the Republic of Tuva.
We will analyze the most interesting representatives of the jerboa family, including species that live in Russia. We will also tell you what the jerboa in the desert eats in more detail.
Long-eared jerboa
The inhabitant of the northern regions of China - Xinjiang and Alanashi. Sometimes found in southern Siberia. It is clear that jerboa have no problems with crossing the border.
It reaches 9 centimeters in length, and has very long ears and antennae. The latter often reach the ground. The tail of this jerboa is longer than the body, and the tassel at the end has a rounded shape. The fur color of the animal is gray with a reddish tint. The sides and belly are white, and the tassel on the tail is black.
You can meet such a funny jerboa while traveling around the amazing Altai Territory. Only exclusively at night.
Five-fingered dwarfish jerboa
Until recently, it was considered exclusively an inhabitant of the Gobi desert. But in 1961, a group of Soviet biologists led by Danila Berman discovered this species in the south of the Republic of Tuva.
The jerboa is quite small: in length it reaches from 5 to 6 cm. The tail is larger than the body in size and is 8 cm. The eyes of the dwarf jerboa are typically large, and the ears, on the contrary, are small. The hind legs have five fingers and are very well developed.
Five-fingered dwarf jerboas are nocturnal. Minks are built in the spring at shallow depths. Sometimes they can borrow a house from their fellow Siberian jerboa.
What does jerboa eat in the desert? Favorite delicacy - feather grass seeds. In the absence of these, it is content with insects.
Large jerboa (earthen hare)
The largest representative of this family of rodents. In length, it can reach up to 26 centimeters. The animal is distinguished by a long tail with a nice brush, shaped like an elongated drop. The color of the earthen hare is light brown, the hue of the skin changes depending on the habitat of the rodent.
Recognized as the northernmost jerboa in terms of habitat. Most often it can be found in the steppes of Kazakhstan and in southern Siberia; a little less often - along the southern tributaries of the Kama and Oka. Even Crimean residents sometimes notice an earthen hare climbing on to eat appetizing seeds of millet or rye on the territory of some remote farm.
The earthen hare is a graceful and beautiful jerboa. The photo speaks for itself.
Jerboa jumper
This rodent is slightly inferior in size to the earthen hare. Its length reaches from 19 to 22 centimeters. The hair of a jumper is either buffy-brown or yellowish-gray. It feeds on seeds, green parts and bulbs of plants, as well as insects.
The habitat is the steppes and sand deserts of Central Asia (Southeast Altai and Northern Uzbekistan). Often lives in the mountains at an altitude of up to two kilometers above sea level. Sometimes it is called the jerboa steppe.
Himranchik
Oddly enough, but this glorious animal is also a jerboa. The animal is very small - grows up to 12 centimeters. The tail, as always, exceeds the length of the body and reaches 16 centimeters.
It differs from all other species of jerboa in that it lives in clay steppes and in gravelly deserts. However, it is sometimes found on sandy soils.
This rare species is common in Russia. It lives in the Dnieper, in the south of the Volga region and near the Irtysh river. Also, some animals of this species inhabit the steppes of Kazakhstan.
Pet or nocturnal desert inhabitant?
Of course, jerboa can be kept as a pet.
But will a true desert man be happy in a locked cage? Nature rewarded the jerboa with powerful hind legs so that it could jump and run in the wild, hunt for insect larvae and find nutritious plant stems (the description of the jerboa is presented above). Locked up he will not be able to realize his natural needs. Therefore, the answer is obvious - the correct place of residence of the jerboa, of course, is wildlife.
Interesting Facts:
- It moves exclusively on two hind legs.
- Escaping from a predator, speeds up to 40 km / h.
- A real neat, not like some bipedal! During the night, an amazing animal takes care of its fur from 20 to 30 times.
- Some types of jerboas are so tiny that they fit easily into a tablespoon.
- During the day, the rodent independently regulates body temperature. Sometimes the fluctuations are as much as 15 degrees! This is due to the very large difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures in the desert. For example, in the Negev (this is a desert in the Middle East) it can be + 30 during the day, and only + 9 at night. That is why desert animals are perfectly adapted to extreme pressure and temperature extremes.
- Excess fat accumulates in the tail of the animal. It is from it that one can judge the state of health of a particular jerboa.
The world of jerboas is interesting and multifaceted. We examined only a small part of the interesting features of these funny animals. Nature generously rewarded jerboas with the necessary skills that help them survive in the cruel, but surprisingly interesting world of deserts.