Chinese birch mouse

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Chinese birch mouse
Systematics
Subclass : Higher mammals (Eutheria)
Order : Rodents (Rodentia)
Subordination : Mouse relatives (Myomorpha)
Family : Sminthidae
Genre : Birch mice ( Sicista )
Type : Chinese birch mouse
Scientific name
Sicista concolor
( Büchner , 1892)

The Chinese birch mouse ( Sicista concolor ) is a rodent from the genus of birch mice ( Sicista ). It occurs from the People's Republic of China to northern India and Pakistan .

features

The Chinese birch mouse reaches a head-trunk length of 5.1 to 7.6 centimeters and a tail of 8.6 to 10.9 centimeters in length with a weight of about 5 to 8 grams. The rear foot length is 17 to 18 millimeters, the ear length about 11 to 14 millimeters. The back fur is dark red-brown, interspersed with black hair. Unlike other birch mice, the species does not have a back stripe along the spine. The ventral side is gray-white. The tail is long and corresponds to the color of the back on the upper side, the underside is slightly lighter. The top of the front and rear feet has individual white hairs, the soles of the feet are bare. The skull has a total length of 19 to 20 millimeters. The upper incisors are orange and notched, the lower ones white.

distribution

The Chinese birch mouse occurs from the People's Republic of China to northern India and Pakistan . In China, the distribution area includes parts of the central to southern provinces of Gansu , the east of Qinghai , Shaanxi , Sichuan and Yunnan .

Way of life

The Chinese birch mouse lives in temperate forest edge habitats, in bushes and in grasslands at altitudes of 2140 to 4000 meters. The animals are nocturnal and feed mainly on green parts of plants, berries and seeds. They build a nest made of grass in the branches of bushes or in crevices in the rock. In the cold season they go into hibernation . The animals communicate with high-pitched whistles. The females probably throw a litter with around three to six pups once a year.

Systematics

The Chinese birch mouse is classified as an independent species within the genus of birch mice ( Sicista ), which consists of fourteen species. The first scientific description comes from Eugen Büchner from 1872, who described the species as Sminthus concolor using individuals from Gansu.

Status, threat and protection

The Chinese birch mouse is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) as not endangered (least concern). This is justified by the comparatively large distribution area and the assumed large and stable stocks.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d e Andrew T. Smith: Chinese Birch Mouse. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , p. 207.
  2. ↑ a b c Sicista concolor in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2014.3. Posted by: S. Molur, 2008. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
  3. ^ Frederick W. True: On the rodents of the genus Sminthus in Kashmir . In: Proceedings of the United States National Museum . tape 17 , no. 1004 , 1894, pp. 351-343 , doi : 10.5479 / si.00963801.1004.351 .
  4. ^ Sicista concolor . In: Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World. A taxonomic and geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .

literature

Web links