Mandarin vole

Mandarin vole
	Mandarin vole ( Lasiopodomys mandarinus )
Systematics
Superfamily :	Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family :	Burrowers (Cricetidae)
Subfamily :	Voles (arvicolinae)
Tribe :	Myodini
Genre :	Lasiopodomys
Type :	Mandarin vole
Scientific name
	Lasiopodomys mandarinus
	( Milne-Edwards , 1871)

The mandarin vole ( Lasiopodomys mandarinus ) is a rodent species from the subfamily of voles (Arvicolinae). It occurs in the northeast of the People's Republic of China as far as Mongolia as well as in Russia and Korea .

features

The mandarin vole reaches a head-trunk length of 9.7 to 11.3 centimeters with a tail of 2.0 to 2.7 centimeters in length . The rear foot length is 15 to 18 millimeters, the ear length 7 to 12 millimeters. The body color of the animals is reddish or chestnut brown to dark gray-brown. The color of the abdomen can be light sand brown to dark gray brown. In lighter animals, the tail is a single color, sandy brown, in darker animals it is gray-brown on the top and sand-colored on the underside. The upper sides of the feet and hands also range in color from light sandy brown to dark gray-brown. Particularly light-colored individuals can be confused with Brandt's Mongolian vole ( Lasiopodomys brandtii ), as they hardly differ from the latter in terms of tooth and skull features.

The skull has a length of 24 to 26 millimeters. As with all species of the genus, the molars are rootless and constantly grow back.

distribution

The Mandarin vole occurs in the northeast of the People's Republic of China to Mongolia as well as Russia and Korea . In China she can be found in Nei Mongol , Hebei , Shandong , Liaoning , Beijing , Shaanxi , Shanxi , Henan , Jiangsu and Anhui . In Russia, the species occurs in Buryatia , the populations there reach as far as northern Mongolia in the area of the Orkhon and Selenga in the northwestern Changai Mountains .

Way of life

The mandarin vole lives in dry mountain steppes at heights of up to 3000 meters. As a rule, it does not occur near forests, but prefers areas near waterholes and is often found in dense shrubbery by rivers, lakes and ponds. It feeds herbivor especially of underground plant parts, added green parts of plants and herbs. In Buryatia, the main diet consists of the thick roots of Stellera chamaejasme . The animals are social and usually live in family groups that share a common den. They are very local and stay in the construction area.

In summer, a group consists of a male with one or two sexually mature females and the young with one to three litters. On average, 8 to 9 animals live in a burrow, the number varies between 3 and 22 animals. Reproduction takes place from March to August, a single litter consists of two to four young animals.

Systematics

The mandarin vole is classified as a separate species within the genus Lasiopodomys , which consists of three species. The first scientific description comes from the French zoologist Alphonse Milne-Edwards , the type specimen probably comes from the vicinity of “Saratsi” in Shanxi.

Darrin Lunde and Andrew T. Smith describe three subspecies for the range in China in Smith & Yan Xie 2009:

Lasiopodomys mandarinus faeceus : in Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Shandong, Jiangsu and Anhui
Lasiopodomys mandarinus johannes : in Shanxi
Lasiopodomys mandarinus mandarinus : in central and southern Nei Mongol , southern Shanxi and northern Henan .

The populations in the Russian part of the distribution area and in northern Mongolia are assigned to the subspecies L. mandarinus vinogradovi .

Status, threat and protection

The Mandarin vole is classified as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified with the large distribution area and the frequent occurrence of the species. Potential endangerment risks for the species are not known. In parts of the area, overgrazing by grazing cattle is responsible for the deterioration of habitats, which also affects the population of the mandarin vole, especially in dry seasons when water holes dry out.

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Mandarin Vole. 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. 228.

↑ ^a ^b Lasiopodomys mandarinus . 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 .

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Lasiopodomys mandarinus in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Posted by: N. Batsaikhan, K. Tsytsulina, 2008. Retrieved October 26, 2016.

literature

Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Mandarin Vole. 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. 228.

Web links

Lasiopodomys mandarinus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Posted by: N. Batsaikhan, K. Tsytsulina, 2008. Retrieved October 26, 2016.

[Smith_&_Yan_Xie_2009-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Mandarin Vole. 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. 228.

[Wilson_&_Reeder_2005-2] Lasiopodomys mandarinus . 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 .