The Zoochat Photographic Guide to Rodents: part two

Uranomys
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Rudd's Mouse Uranomys ruddi

 

Gerbillinae (gerbils and jirds)
About 100 species in 16 genera: Ammodillus, Brachiones, Desmodilliscus, Desmodillus, Dipodillus, Gerbilliscus, Gerbillurus, Gerbillus, Meriones, Microdillus, Pachyuromys, Psammomys, Rhombomys, Sekeetamys, Tatera, Taterillus

Twenty-two species are represented in the Zoochat galleries, from eight genera: Dipodillus, Gerbilliscus, Gerbillus, Meriones, Pachyuromys, Psammomys, Rhombomys, Sekeetamys.


Gerbillinae is divided into five Tribes:


Ammodillini
One species, in the genus Ammodillus

The single species is not depicted here.


Desmodilliscini
Two species, in two genera: Desmodilliscus and Pachyuromys

One species is depicted here, from the genus Pachyuromys.


Gerbillini
About 75 species in eight genera: Brachiones, Dipodillus, Gerbillus, Meriones, Microdillus, Psammomys, Rhombomys, Sekeetamys

Twenty species are depicted here, from six genera: Dipodillus, Gerbillus, Meriones, Psammomys, Rhombomys and Sekeetamys.


Gerbillurini
Seventeen species in four genera: Desmodillus, Gerbilliscus, Gerbillurus, Tatera

One species is depicted here, from the genus Gerbilliscus.


Taterillini
Nine species in the single genus Taterillus

None of the species are depicted here.


Because three-quarters of the species are in one Tribe anyway (Gerbillini - and over half of those species are in a single genus [Gerbillus]), in the following posts I will just present all the genera alphabetically rather than dividing them by Tribe.

 

Ammodillus
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Somali Gerbil Ammodillus imbellis

Also called Walo or Ammodile.

 

Brachiones
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Przewalski's Gerbil Brachiones przewalskii

 

Desmodilliscus
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Pouched Gerbil Desmodilliscus braueri

 

Desmodillus
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Cape Short-eared Gerbil Desmodillus auricularis

 

Dipodillus
Thirteen species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.

This genus may be merged into Gerbillus as a subgenus.


North African Gerbil Dipodillus campestris
Treated as monotypic in Mammals of Africa by Kingdon, although it is noted that the taxonomy is extremely complicated.

Photo by @Maguari at Poznan Zoo (Poland)


Rock Gerbil at the New Zoo, Poznan Sept 08 - ZooChat



Botta's Gerbil Dipodillus bottai
Wagner's Gerbil Dipodillus dasyurus
Harwood's Gerbil Dipodillus harwoodi
James' Gerbil Dipodillus jamesi
Lowe's Gerbil Dipodillus lowei
Mackilligin's Gerbil Dipodillus mackilligini
Greater Short-tailed Gerbil Dipodillus maghrebi
Rock Gerbil Dipodillus rupicola
Lesser Short-tailed Gerbil Dipodillus simoni
Somalian Gerbil Dipodillus somalicus
Khartoum Gerbil Dipodillus stigmonyx
Kerkennah Islands Gerbil Dipodillus zakariai

 

Gerbilliscus
Eleven species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Bushveld Gerbil Gerbilliscus leucogaster
Up to 17 subspecies have been described, but Kingdon's Mammals of Africa treats the species as monotypic because the named subspecies are all continuous in distribution.


Both photos below by @BeardsleyZooFan of a wild-caught animal, South Africa (in the second photo, the animal on the left of the photo is the gerbil)


Bushveld Gerbil - ZooChat


Bushveld Gerbil and Red Veld Rat - ZooChat



The remaining species in the genus:

Cape Gerbil Gerbilliscus afra
Boehm's Gerbil Gerbilliscus boehmi
Highveld Gerbil Gerbilliscus brantsii
Guinean Gerbil Gerbilliscus guineae
Gorongoza Gerbil Gerbilliscus inclusus
Kemp's Gerbil Gerbilliscus kempi
Black-tailed Gerbil Gerbilliscus nigricaudus
Phillips's Gerbil Gerbilliscus phillipsi
Fringe-tailed Gerbil Gerbilliscus robustus
Savanna Gerbil Gerbilliscus validus

 

Gerbillurus
Four species, none of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Hairy-footed Gerbil Gerbillurus paeba
Namib Brush-tailed Gerbil Gerbillurus setzeri
Dune Hairy-footed Gerbil Gerbillurus tytonis
Bushy-tailed Hairy-footed Gerbil Gerbillurus vallinus

 

Gerbillus
About thirty-five species, only six of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.

Note: anywhere between twenty and sixty species have been recognised within the genus Gerbillus. Currently there are about 35 species included in the genus, with the thirteen species in Dipodillus having been split off (otherwise treated as a subgenus of Gerbillus).


Anderson's Gerbil Gerbillus andersoni
Three subspecies are generally recognised (andersoni, bonhotei, inflatus) but some authors would elevate these to three distinct species. Kingdon in Mammals of Africa considers the species to be monotypic (not recognising the additional names above as either subspecies or species).

Photo by @Maguari at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic)


Anderson's Gerbil at Pilsen, 01/09/12 - ZooChat


Cheesman's Gerbil Gerbillus cheesmani
Probably monotypic. The species G. aquilus (and its synonym G. subsolanus) has been treated as a subspecies of G. cheesmani but is now generally considered to be a full species.

Photo by @vogelcommando of privately-kept animals


Cheesman's gerbils - Gerbillus cheesmani - ZooChat


Lesser Egyptian Gerbil Gerbillus gerbillus
Many synonyms have been listed but I'm not sure which are considered valid subspecies.

Photo by @vogelcommando of privately-kept animals


Lesser Egyptian gerbil - ZooChat


Baluchistan or Dwarf Gerbil Gerbillus nanus
The species has a wide range across Asia and is extremely variable in appearance (and apparently genetically), so I haven't tried working out valid subspecies.

Note: the three species G. garamantis, G. quadrimaculatus and G. vivax are now considered to be synonyms of G. nanus. The African species G. amoenus may also be included within G. nanus but here is kept separate.

Photo by @Giant Eland at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic)


Balochistan gerbil or dwarf gerbil (Gerbillus nanus) - ZooChat


Pale Gerbil Gerbillus perpallidus
Monotypic?

Note: may be synonymous with G. floweri (itself formerly treated as a subspecies of G. pyramidum), which has a neighbouring distribution and they group with each other genetically. The name G. floweri would have priority in that case. Zootierliste treats floweri and perpallidus as synonyms, but most sources don't and here I am keeping them separate.

Photo by @TeaLovingDave at Berlin Zoo (Germany)


Pallid Gerbil (Gerbillus perpallidus) at Zoo Berlin - April 4th 2014 - ZooChat


Photo by @HOMIN96 at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic)


Pale gerbil (Gerbillus perpallidus) - ZooChat


Greater Egyptian Gerbil Gerbillus pyramidum
Monotypic, although there are a number of synonyms and authors may combine other species here as subspecies.

Photo by @vogelcommando of a privately-kept animal


Greater Egyptian gerbil - Gerbillus pyramidum - ZooChat



The remaining species in the genus Gerbillus are below:

Berbera Gerbil Gerbillus acticola
Agag Gerbil Gerbillus agag
Pleasant Gerbil Gerbillus amoenus
Swarthy Gerbil Gerbillus aquilus
Brockman's Gerbil Gerbillus brockmani
Burton's Gerbil Gerbillus burtoni
Dongola Gerbil Gerbillus dongolanus
Somalia Gerbil Gerbillus dunni
Black-tufted Gerbil Gerbillus famulus
Flower's Gerbil Gerbillus floweri [formerly treated as a subspecies of G. pyramidum, and may be identical with G. perpallidus]
Indian Hairy-footed Gerbil Gerbillus gleadowi
Grobben's Gerbil Gerbillus grobbeni
Pigmy Gerbil Gerbillus henleyi
Western Gerbil Gerbillus hesperinus
Hoogstraal's Gerbil Gerbillus hoogstraali
Lataste's Gerbil Gerbillus latastei
Mauritanian Gerbil Gerbillus mauritaniae
Harrison's Gerbil Gerbillus mesopotamiae
Darfur Gerbil Gerbillus muriculus
Sudan Gerbil Gerbillus nancillus
Nigerian Gerbil Gerbillus nigeriae
Occidental Gerbil Gerbillus occiduus
Large Aden Gerbil Gerbillus poecilops
Principal Gerbil Gerbillus principulus
Cushioned Gerbil Gerbillus pulvinatus
Least Gerbil Gerbillus pusillus
Rosalinda Gerbil Gerbillus rosalinda
Sand Gerbil Gerbillus syrticus
Tarabul's Gerbil Gerbillus tarabuli
Waters's Gerbil Gerbillus watersi

 

Meriones
Seventeen species, ten of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Arabian Jird Meriones arimalius
Monotypic. Alternatively treated as a subspecies of M. lybicus.

Photo by @Maguari at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic)


Arabian Jird at Pilsen, 01/09/12 - ZooChat


Sundevall's Jird Meriones crassus
Nine subspecies: asyutensis, charon, crassus, longifrons, pallidus, perpallidus, swinhoei, taureg, tripolius

Photo by @HOMIN96 at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic) (Egyptian subspecies perpallidus)


Sundevall's jird (Meriones crassus perpallidus) - ZooChat


Moroccan Jird Meriones grandis
Monotypic. Formerly treated as a subspecies of M. shawi.

Photo by @Mehdi in the wild, Morocco


Moroccan jird - (El Jouaber) - ZooChat


Libyan Jird Meriones libycus
Three subspecies: erythrourus, libycus, syrius. The Arabian M. arimalius has been split off as a full species. The Chinese subspecies erythrourus may likewise be split as a full species.

Photo by @Maguari at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic) (subspecies syrius)


Libyan Jird at Pilsen, 01/09/12 - ZooChat


Midday Jird Meriones meridianus
A very large number of subspecies have been described (e.g. A Guide to the Mammals of China considers there to be nine subspecies in that country alone), and there is seemingly little agreement so I have not tried to sort them out. The species M. dahli may also be treated as a subspecies of M. meridianus.

Photo by @Giant Eland at Moscow Zoo (Russia) (subspecies nogaiorum)


(Meriones meridianus nogaiorum) Midday gerbil - ZooChat


Persian Jird Meriones persicus
Six subspecies have been described: ambrosius, baptistae, gurganensis, persicus, rossicus, suschkini

Photo by @HOMIN96 at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic) (subspecies rossicus)


Persian jird (Meriones persicus rossicus) - ZooChat


Shaw's Jird Meriones shawi
Three subspecies are recognised in Mammals of Africa by Kingdon (grandis, shawi, trouessarti) but up to eleven have been described. The subspecies grandis has since been split as a full species.

Photo by @vogelcommando (unknown subspecies)


Shaw's gerbil - Meriones shawi - ZooChat


Tristram's Jird Meriones tristrami
At least six subspecies: bodenheimeri, bogdanovi, intraponticus, karieteni, kilisensis, tristrami

Photo by @Maguari at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic) (unknown subspecies)


Tristram's Jird at Pilsen, 01/09/12 - ZooChat


Mongolian Gerbil Meriones unguiculatus
Four subspecies have been described although they seem to be all synonymised now: kozlovi, kurauchii, selenginus, unguiculatus

Photo by @twilighter at Plzen Zoo (Czech Republic)


Mongolian Gerbil - ZooChat


Vinogradov's Jird Meriones vinogradovi
Monotypic

Photo by @Giant Eland at Moscow Zoo (Russia)


(Meriones vinogradovi) Vinogradov's jird - ZooChat



The remaining species in the genus Meriones are below:

Cheng's Jird Meriones chengi
Dahl's Jird Meriones dahli
Indian Desert Jird Meriones hurrianae
King Jird Meriones rex
Buxton's Jird Meriones sacramenti
Tamarisk Jird Meriones tamariscinus
Zarudny's Jird Meriones zarudnyi

 

Microdillus
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Somali Pigmy Gerbil Microdillus peeli

 

Pachyuromys
One species


Fat-tailed Gerbil Pachyuromys duprasi
Three subspecies: duprasi, faroulti, natronensis (all considered synonyms by some authors)

Note: although the animals in the photographs below all look like juveniles, this is just how adults of the species look.


Photo by @Nanook at Paultons Park (UK) (showing the short fat tail which gives the species its common name)


Duprasi or Fat-tailed Jird. - ZooChat


Photo by @vogelcommando at Terraria - Houten (Netherlands) (also showing the tail in one of the animals)


Fat-tailed gerbils - ZooChat

 

Psammomys
Two species, one of which is represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Fat Sand Rat Psammomys obesus
Up to seven subspecies have been named, although their validity varies with author: algiricus, dianae, edusa, nicolli, roudairei, terraesanctae, tripolitanus

Note: the common and scientific names originally came from obese captive animals fed on a diet of seed; in the wild they are leaf-eating specialists.


Photo by @TeaLovingDave at Tierpark Hellabrunn (Germany) (subspecies obesus)


Fat Sand Rat (Psammomys obesus obesus) at Tierpark Hellabrunn - April 9th 2 - ZooChat


Photo by @alexkant at Meir Segals Garden University Zoo (Israel) (subspecies terraesanctae) (the tails are hidden in this photograph)


Fat sand rat/ Psammomys obesus terrasanctae - ZooChat


The other species in the genus, not depicted here, is the Thin Sand Rat Psammomys vexillaris.

 

Rhombomys
One species


Great Gerbil Rhombomys opimus
Four subspecies: fumicola, opimus, sargadensis, sodalis. Other subspecies which have been used include alaschanicus, dalversinicus, giganteus, nigrescens, pevzovi.


Photo by @baboon in the wild, Mongolia


Great gerbils emerging from their burrow - ZooChat


Photo by @Elephas Maximus at Ekaterinburg Zoo (Russia)


Great gerbil/Rhombomys opimus - ZooChat

 

Sekeetamys
One species


Bushy-tailed Jird Sekeetamys calurus
Two subspecies: calurus, makrami


Photo by @Baldur at Henry Doorly Zoo (USA) (note that the tail in this specimen is largely missing and is not typical for the species)


Henry Doorly Zoo 2010 - Bushy-tailed Jird in Kingdoms of the Night - ZooChat

 

Tatera
One species, not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Indian Gerbil Tatera indica

 

Taterillus
Nine species, none of which are represented in the Zoochat galleries.


Robbins's Gerbil Taterillus arenarius
Congo Gerbil Taterillus congicus
Emin's Gerbil Taterillus emini
Gracile Gerbil Taterillus gracilis
Harrington's Gerbil Taterillus harringtoni
Lake Chad Gerbil Taterillus lacustris
Petter's Gerbil Taterillus petteri
Senegal Gerbil Taterillus pygargus
Tranieri's Gerbil Taterillus tranieri

 

Leimacomyinae (Togo Mouse)
One species, in the genus Leimacomys

The species is not represented in the Zoochat galleries.


The single species in this subfamily is the Togo Mouse Leimacomys buettneri, known from only two specimens collected in 1890 in Togo. It is also known as Buettner's Forest Mouse or Groove-toothed Forest Mouse.


The relationships of the species has been much debated, with it being placed within both Murinae and Dendromurinae (now a subfamily of Nesomyidae but formerly under Muridae). Currently it is housed in its own subfamily within Muridae, and may be most closely related to the Deomyinae (spiny mice).

 

Lophiomyinae (Maned Rat)
One species, in the genus Lophiomys

The species is represented in the Zoochat galleries only by a photo of a museum specimen.


Maned Rat or Crested Rat Lophiomys imhausi
Monotypic


Photo by @Giant Eland at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (USA) (taxidermy specimen)


crested rat (Lophiomys imhausi) - ZooChat