Djungarian hamster
Encyclopedia
The Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungorus), also known as the Siberian hamster or Russian winter white dwarf hamster, is a species of hamster in the genus
Phodopus. It is ball-shaped and typically half the size of the Syrian hamster
, and therefore called a dwarf hamster along with all Phodopus species. Features of the Djungarian hamster include a typically thick, dark grey dorsal stripe and furry feet. As winter approaches and the days shorten, the Djungarian hamster's dark fur is just about entirely replaced with white fur. In captivity, this does not always happen. In the wild, they originate from Dzungaria
, the wheat fields
of Kazakhstan
, the meadows of Mongolia
, Siberia
, and the birch stands of Manchuria
.
Djungarian hamsters are common as pets in Europe and North America, and exhibit greater variance in their coats than those found in the wild. They reproduce often—more so than Syrian hamsters—and, as they have no fixed breeding season, can continue to produce large amounts of offspring all year round. Young pups will act aggressively to one another; whilst breeding females may show similar aggression to males.
The coat of the Djungarian hamster is less woolly than that of the Campbell's dwarf hamster
, and apart from the normal colouring, they can be coloured pearl, sapphire, mandarin, blue, argente, yellow blue fawn, camel, brown, cream, merle and umbrous. The head length of the Djungarian hamster is 70 to 90 millimetres in length, the length of the tail is five to 15 millimetres, and the hind legs are 11 to 15 millimetres. The body weight
changes dramatically throughout the year. It is at its lowest from July to August. In males, the body weight ranges from 19 gram (0.670205279997127 oz) to 45 grams (1.6 oz), and in females, 19 gram (0.670205279997127 oz) to 36 grams (1.3 oz). In human care, they are slightly heavier. The average lifespan of the Djungarian hamster is one to three years of age in aptivity (animal)|captivity|, though they can live longer. In the wild, they are known to live as little as one year.
In summer, the fur of the Djungarian hamster on the back changes from ash-grey to dark brown, or sometimes pale brown with a tint
. The face changes to grey or brown, while the mouth area, the whisker
area and the ears are slightly brighter. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint. The outer ears and the eyes have black edges. The rest of the head is dark brown or black. From the head to the tail runs a black-brown dorsal stripe. The throat, belly, tail and limbs are white. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint with scattered black hairs. The hairs on the underside are completely white.
The bright coat the bottom extends to the shoulders, flanks and hips in three arches upward. It is distinguished from the darker fur on the top of the existing black-brown hair, three curved line.
Apart from the typical colouration, Djungarian hamsters can also be coloured pearl, sapphire, mandarin, blue, argente, yellow blue fawn, camel, brown, cream, merle and umbrous.
In the winter
, the fur is more dense
.
They sometimes have a grey tint on their head.
More than ten percent of the hamsters kept in the first winter develop the summer coat. In the second winter, only a few change into the winter coat and winter colour is less pronounced. The moulting in the winter fur starts in October or November and is completed in December, while the summer coat begins in January or February and is completed in March or early April. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint.
Moulting both run jobs on the head and the back of the spine to the sides, the legs and the underside. The hairs grow longer in the summer, to about ten millimetres long.
The pigmentation of hair is controlled by the hormone prolactin
and colour genetics
.
Day length must be less than fourteen hours to initiate the change to winter coat. The change to the winter coat can be triggered in the summer by the short day lengths. The change occurs back to the summer coat in the autumn, when the length of the days change again. At internal temperatures hamsters in captivity start later with the changes. The winter colour is less pronounced in them. The eyes of the Djungarian hamster are black, unless it is albino in which case they are red.
is one of the Djungarian hamsters main predators. Most of these burrows have six entrances. In the summer time, the burrows are lined with moss. To keep the burrow warm in the winter, the Djungarian hamster closes all but one entrance and lines the burrows with animal fur or wool
that it finds. The temperature inside the burrow is usually 16.7 °C (62.1 °F). Djungarian hamsters sometimes live in the semi-deserts in Central Asia
. They also live in the dry steppes and wheat or alfalfa
fields as well as on small fields in the forests of the region around Minusinsk
. The fur on the Djungarian hamster's feet protect the feet from the cold ground from in the cold climates in the wild. The population density
is highly varied. In 1968, the first four examples of the Djungarian hamster were caught in Western Siberia and brought to the Max Planck Institute in Germany
.
is named as a separate species within the Phodopus sungorus species with respect to subspecies. Other subspecies are not distinguished. The Djungarian hamster was described by Peter Simon Pallas
in 1773 as a mouse
. The species name sungorus derives from the Dsungaria. In 1778, Pallas re-named the Djungarian hamster to mouse songarus.
Ned Hollister
ordered the Djungarian hamster in 1912 to the genus Phodopus. A. I. Argiropulo, in 1933, changed the name to priority sungorus and united the Djungarian hamster as a subspecies of Phodopus sungorus sungorus with the Campbell's Dwarf Hamster.
, dehydration
, dental malocclusion, diarrhea and ear problems. The Djungarian hamster is easy to tame. In addition to the natural colourings in the wild, ("ruddy" or "agouti
") Djungarian hamsters in captivity come in a variety of different colours.
.
During the breeding time, the Djungarian hamster may become aggressive. After mating, the female may want to attack the male to protect her babies. The male will usually hide in holes or caves to escape from the vicious bite of the female Djungarian hamster. The Djungarian hamster's estrous cycle lasts four days, this means every four days, the female may accept the male back to breed again. This usually occurs when the darkness of the evening sets in. If a male and female Djungarian hamster are not housed together from a young age, it is difficult to tell if the female is willing to breed with the male.
can cause health and breathing problems. In addition, the widespread breeding and distribution of hybrids could threaten the existence of both pure species and subspecies of the ecosystem, resulting in only "mongrels" existing. Each litter becomes smaller and the young begin to form congenital problems.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Phodopus. It is ball-shaped and typically half the size of the Syrian hamster
Golden Hamster
The golden hamster or Syrian hamster, Mesocricetus auratus, is a very well known member of the rodent subfamily Cricetinae, the hamsters. In the wild they are now considered vulnerable. Their numbers have been declining due to loss of habitat and deliberate destruction by humans. However, they are...
, and therefore called a dwarf hamster along with all Phodopus species. Features of the Djungarian hamster include a typically thick, dark grey dorsal stripe and furry feet. As winter approaches and the days shorten, the Djungarian hamster's dark fur is just about entirely replaced with white fur. In captivity, this does not always happen. In the wild, they originate from Dzungaria
Dzungaria
Dzungaria, also called Zungaria, is a geographical region in northwest China corresponding to the northern half of Xinjiang. It covers approximately , lying mostly within Xinjiang, and extending into western Mongolia and eastern Kazakhstan...
, the wheat fields
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
of Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, the meadows of Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, and the birch stands of Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
.
Djungarian hamsters are common as pets in Europe and North America, and exhibit greater variance in their coats than those found in the wild. They reproduce often—more so than Syrian hamsters—and, as they have no fixed breeding season, can continue to produce large amounts of offspring all year round. Young pups will act aggressively to one another; whilst breeding females may show similar aggression to males.
Biology
Campbell's dwarf hamster
Campbell's Russian dwarf hamster is a species of dwarf hamster. It was discovered by W.C. Campbell in 1902 in Tuva, an area that has historically been geographically linked with both China and Russia...
, and apart from the normal colouring, they can be coloured pearl, sapphire, mandarin, blue, argente, yellow blue fawn, camel, brown, cream, merle and umbrous. The head length of the Djungarian hamster is 70 to 90 millimetres in length, the length of the tail is five to 15 millimetres, and the hind legs are 11 to 15 millimetres. The body weight
Body weight
The term body weight is used in daily English speech as well as in the contexts of biological and medical sciences to describe the mass of an organism's body. Body weight is measured in kilograms throughout the world, although in some countries it is still measured in pounds or stones and pounds...
changes dramatically throughout the year. It is at its lowest from July to August. In males, the body weight ranges from 19 gram (0.670205279997127 oz) to 45 grams (1.6 oz), and in females, 19 gram (0.670205279997127 oz) to 36 grams (1.3 oz). In human care, they are slightly heavier. The average lifespan of the Djungarian hamster is one to three years of age in aptivity (animal)|captivity|, though they can live longer. In the wild, they are known to live as little as one year.
In summer, the fur of the Djungarian hamster on the back changes from ash-grey to dark brown, or sometimes pale brown with a tint
Tint
In color theory, a tint is the mixture of a color with white.Tint may also refer to:* Tint control, an adjustment to correct for phase error in the picture color on a NTSC television set* Tint , an album by Merzbow...
. The face changes to grey or brown, while the mouth area, the whisker
Whisker
Whisker may refer to:* an element of box plots* cat's whisker diode, a thin wire used as a contact on a crystal radio receiver* facial hair, hair on the face of a human* vibrissa, a hair on the face of a mammal, used for sensing the surroundings...
area and the ears are slightly brighter. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint. The outer ears and the eyes have black edges. The rest of the head is dark brown or black. From the head to the tail runs a black-brown dorsal stripe. The throat, belly, tail and limbs are white. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint with scattered black hairs. The hairs on the underside are completely white.
The bright coat the bottom extends to the shoulders, flanks and hips in three arches upward. It is distinguished from the darker fur on the top of the existing black-brown hair, three curved line.
Apart from the typical colouration, Djungarian hamsters can also be coloured pearl, sapphire, mandarin, blue, argente, yellow blue fawn, camel, brown, cream, merle and umbrous.
In the winter
Winter
Winter is the coldest season of the year in temperate climates, between autumn and spring. At the winter solstice, the days are shortest and the nights are longest, with days lengthening as the season progresses after the solstice.-Meteorology:...
, the fur is more dense
Density
The mass density or density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol most often used for density is ρ . In some cases , density is also defined as its weight per unit volume; although, this quantity is more properly called specific weight...
.
They sometimes have a grey tint on their head.
More than ten percent of the hamsters kept in the first winter develop the summer coat. In the second winter, only a few change into the winter coat and winter colour is less pronounced. The moulting in the winter fur starts in October or November and is completed in December, while the summer coat begins in January or February and is completed in March or early April. The ears are grey with a pinkish tint.
Moulting both run jobs on the head and the back of the spine to the sides, the legs and the underside. The hairs grow longer in the summer, to about ten millimetres long.
The pigmentation of hair is controlled by the hormone prolactin
Prolactin
Prolactin also known as luteotropic hormone is a protein that in humans is encoded by the PRL gene.Prolactin is a peptide hormone discovered by Henry Friesen...
and colour genetics
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
.
Day length must be less than fourteen hours to initiate the change to winter coat. The change to the winter coat can be triggered in the summer by the short day lengths. The change occurs back to the summer coat in the autumn, when the length of the days change again. At internal temperatures hamsters in captivity start later with the changes. The winter colour is less pronounced in them. The eyes of the Djungarian hamster are black, unless it is albino in which case they are red.
In the wild
In the wild, the Djungarian hamster's fur changes colour in the winter. This adaptation helps them to evade predators in the snow-covered steppes of winter. The Djungarian hamster digs tunnels one metre deep leading to ground burrows where they can sleep, raise their young and hide from predators. The weaselWeasel
Weasels are mammals forming the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family. They are small, active predators, long and slender with short legs....
is one of the Djungarian hamsters main predators. Most of these burrows have six entrances. In the summer time, the burrows are lined with moss. To keep the burrow warm in the winter, the Djungarian hamster closes all but one entrance and lines the burrows with animal fur or wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
that it finds. The temperature inside the burrow is usually 16.7 °C (62.1 °F). Djungarian hamsters sometimes live in the semi-deserts in Central Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. They also live in the dry steppes and wheat or alfalfa
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
fields as well as on small fields in the forests of the region around Minusinsk
Minusinsk
Minusinsk is a historic town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It serves as the administrative center of Minusinsky District, although it is not administratively a part of it. Population: 44,500 ....
. The fur on the Djungarian hamster's feet protect the feet from the cold ground from in the cold climates in the wild. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
is highly varied. In 1968, the first four examples of the Djungarian hamster were caught in Western Siberia and brought to the Max Planck Institute in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Systematics
The Djungarian hamster is a species of Phodopus. The Campbell's Dwarf HamsterCampbell's dwarf hamster
Campbell's Russian dwarf hamster is a species of dwarf hamster. It was discovered by W.C. Campbell in 1902 in Tuva, an area that has historically been geographically linked with both China and Russia...
is named as a separate species within the Phodopus sungorus species with respect to subspecies. Other subspecies are not distinguished. The Djungarian hamster was described by Peter Simon Pallas
Peter Simon Pallas
Peter Simon Pallas was a German zoologist and botanist who worked in Russia.- Life and work :Pallas was born in Berlin, the son of Professor of Surgery Simon Pallas. He studied with private tutors and took an interest in natural history, later attending the University of Halle and the University...
in 1773 as a mouse
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
. The species name sungorus derives from the Dsungaria. In 1778, Pallas re-named the Djungarian hamster to mouse songarus.
Ned Hollister
Ned Hollister
Ned Hollister was an American biologist primarily known for studying mammals. From 1916 until his death he was Superintendent of the National Zoological Park...
ordered the Djungarian hamster in 1912 to the genus Phodopus. A. I. Argiropulo, in 1933, changed the name to priority sungorus and united the Djungarian hamster as a subspecies of Phodopus sungorus sungorus with the Campbell's Dwarf Hamster.
Pet ownership
Djungarian hamsters are often found on the pet market in Europe and North America. Care of the Djungarian hamster is similar to all other species of Phodopus. The Djungarian hamsters along with most rodents, are prone to tumours. They can also get injury to their cheek pouch from sharp objects damaging the fragile inner lining of the cheek pouches. Other health problems include: bite wounds, broken teeth, constipationConstipation
Constipation refers to bowel movements that are infrequent or hard to pass. Constipation is a common cause of painful defecation...
, dehydration
Dehydration
In physiology and medicine, dehydration is defined as the excessive loss of body fluid. It is literally the removal of water from an object; however, in physiological terms, it entails a deficiency of fluid within an organism...
, dental malocclusion, diarrhea and ear problems. The Djungarian hamster is easy to tame. In addition to the natural colourings in the wild, ("ruddy" or "agouti
Common agouti
The popular term Agouti designates several rodent species of the genus Dasyprocta that inhabit areas of Middle America, the West Indies, and northern South America. They are related to guinea pigs and look quite similar but have longer legs. The species vary in color from tawny to dark brown with...
") Djungarian hamsters in captivity come in a variety of different colours.
Breeding
Djungarian hamsters reproduce at a faster rate than Syrian hamsters. Phodopus are able to become pregnant again on the same day that they have given birth. This can all happen within a thirty-six day period. This is done as a survival strategy to produce large numbers of offspring in a short period of time. This places tremendous demands on the mother. Research suggests biparental care in Campbell's hamsters (Phodopus campbelli) but not in Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus). Frequent fighting can occur between the pups and as soon as they are weaned from their mother, they are separated from their mother. They should not be separated from their mother before three weeks of age. Most Djungarian hamster dwarf hamsters grow to 3 to 4" long. Djungarian hamsters breed all year round as there is no specific breeding seasonBreeding season
The breeding season is the most suitable season, usually with favourable conditions and abundant food and water, for breeding among some wild animals and birds . Species with a breeding season have naturally evolved to have sexual intercourse during a certain time of year in order to achieve the...
.
During the breeding time, the Djungarian hamster may become aggressive. After mating, the female may want to attack the male to protect her babies. The male will usually hide in holes or caves to escape from the vicious bite of the female Djungarian hamster. The Djungarian hamster's estrous cycle lasts four days, this means every four days, the female may accept the male back to breed again. This usually occurs when the darkness of the evening sets in. If a male and female Djungarian hamster are not housed together from a young age, it is difficult to tell if the female is willing to breed with the male.
Hybrids
Of the five species kept commonly as pets, only the Campbell's dwarf hamster and Djungarian hamsters are able to interbreed and produce live offspring or hybrids. Although hybrids make suitable pets, the breeding of hybrids and cloningCloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
can cause health and breathing problems. In addition, the widespread breeding and distribution of hybrids could threaten the existence of both pure species and subspecies of the ecosystem, resulting in only "mongrels" existing. Each litter becomes smaller and the young begin to form congenital problems.