Mongolian silver vole

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Mongolian silver vole
Systematics
Superfamily : Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family : Burrowers (Cricetidae)
Subfamily : Voles (arvicolinae)
Tribe : Myodini
Genre : Mountain voles ( Alticola )
Type : Mongolian silver vole
Scientific name
Alticola semicanus
( GM Allen , 1924)

The Mongolian silver vole ( Alticola semicanus ) is a rodent species from the genus of the mountain voles ( Alticola ). It occurs in Mongolia , in southern Siberia in the north of the Chinese province of Nei Mongol .

features

The Mongolian silver vole reaches a head-trunk length of 10.4 to 14.0 centimeters with a tail of 2.4 to 3.5 centimeters in length . The rear foot length is 19 to 23 millimeters, the ear length 15 to 21 millimeters. It is a comparatively large species of the genus. The back fur is sand-colored gray with a few black hairs. The belly side is sand-colored white and sharply demarcated from the back on the sides of the body; there is often a yellowish-red stripe at the border. The tail is covered with white hair and stands out clearly in color from the darker back.

The skull has a total length of 27.0 to 31.0 centimeters and is significantly flattened compared to other species of the genus, it has relatively long tympanic bladders (Bullae tympanica) with a length of about 8.5 millimeters.

distribution

The Mongolian silver vole is found in Mongolia , in Tuwa in southern Siberia and in the north of the Chinese province of Nei Mongol .

The range of the species borders on that of the Tuwa silver vole ( Alticola tuvinicus ) and the Gobi-Altai mountain vole ( Alticola barakshin ), but does not overlap.

Way of life

The Mongolian silver vole lives in dry and semi-arid regions of the mountains above the conifer line up to the snow line . It occurs mainly in stony pastures, meadows and bushes made of juniper stands with isolated rocks. The animals are primarily nocturnal, but can also be observed during the day. They feed exclusively herbivorous plant parts. The burrows lie beneath rocks and stones, at the entrance they usually leave large amounts of crooked excrement.

Systematics

The Mongolian silver vole is classified as an independent species within the genus of the mountain voles ( Alticola ), which consists of twelve species. The first scientific description comes from the American zoologist Glover Morrill Allen from 1924, who described the species as Microtus worthingtoni semicanus on the basis of individuals from the southeastern Changai Mountains on the upper reaches of the Ongi in Mongolia . The species was partially synonymous with the Royle mountain vole ( Alticola roylei ) and the silver mountain vole ( Alticola argentatus ) .

Status, threat and protection

The Mongolian silver vole is classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified with the very large distribution area and the large populations of the species. No information is available on the population figures, and there are no known risks to the species in the distribution area of ​​the species.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Mongolian Mountain 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 , pp. 217-218.
  2. ↑ a b c Alticola (Alticola) semicanus . 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 .
  3. ↑ a b c d e Alticola macrotis in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Posted by: N. Batsaikhan, D. Tinnin, S. Shar, G. Sukhchuluun, 2008. Retrieved September 22, 2016 ..

literature

  • Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Mongolian Mountain 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 , pp. 217-218.

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