Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) — species profile (taxonomy, origin, lifespan, husbandry basics)
Authoritative first-hand species account (Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan). All bullet facts are verbatim from the cited source and C1-substring verified.
Natural History & Origin
- The majority of the species' range
- As their range has become increasingly
- Hamster burrows are often found in legume plots or near irrigation wells.
Habitat
- Historically, golden hamsters probably inhabited open steppe habitat, which once characterized
- of eastern Europe and western Asia,and larger than Roborovski's desert hamsters
- some sort of anthropogenic disturbance.
Size
- Overall, precipitation is very low (~336 mm/year).
- They are significantly smaller than common hamsters (
- relatively small eyes, large ears, and a short (1.5 cm) tail.
Lifespan
- can live nearly twice as long in captivity as in the wild.
Behavior & Social Structure
- Golden hamsters are solitary and highly territorial.
- has a bearing on its social status.
- ranking system or pecking order among members of a long-term social group, where dominance
Reproduction
- Ovulation in mature female golden hamsters is mainly determined by photoperiod.
- exposed to complete darkness in a lab setting, they will stop ovulating.
- after 5 months, the females will acclimate to this shorter photoperiod and begin ovulating
Diet
- A great deal of information can be discerned from flank markings,
- As a result of their diet of seeds and grains, they also disperse seeds, as seeds
- The greatest threat to wild populations is human