Eastern blind mouse
| Eastern blind mouse | ||||||||||||
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Eastern blind mouse ( Spalax microphthalmus ) |
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| Spalax microphthalmus | ||||||||||||
| Güldenstädt , 1770 |
The Eastern blind mouse ( Spalax microphthalmus ) is a rodent from the subfamily of blind mice .
description
The animal, which is 24.2 to 31 centimeters long and weighs 370 to 570 grams , is similar to the western blind mouse , but is larger and more gray. The hairline edges are more or less white, as well as the back and sometimes the front of the head. The eyes are only rudimentarily developed and covered by a skin membrane.
Similar types:
- Bucovinian blind mouse ( Spalax graecus )
- Western blind mouse ( Spalax leucodon )
Occurrence and way of life
The Eastern blind vole lives in southern Russia and Ukraine. She is completely blind. Their diet consists mainly of roots, especially of the dandelion, as well as grasses, seeds, insects and their larvae. It throws up mounds of earth that are larger than molehills . Unlike the mole, its paws are not converted into digging, instead it digs with its prominent incisors. Their corridors can run up to four meters underground. One building was 169 meters long with 114 hills. Occasionally it comes to the surface and warms up in the sun. Sometimes it is preyed on by owls, as can be seen from the contents of wool . In March the female gives birth to two to five young. The nest is under a raised mound of earth.
literature
- David Macdonald, Priscilla Barrett : Collins Field Guide Mammals of Britain & Europe. HarperCollins, London et al. 1993, ISBN 0-00-219779-0 .
- Fritz Dieterlen: family root rats. In: Bernhard Grzimek (ed.): Grzimeks animal life . Encyclopedia of the Animal Kingdom. Volume 11: Mammals. Part 2. Kindler, Zurich 1967, ISBN 3-463-16911-8 .
- Frederik H. van den Brink: The mammals of Europe west of the 30th degree of longitude. A paperback for zoologists and nature lovers. 2nd, revised edition. Paul Parey, Hamburg et al. 1972, ISBN 3-490-00218-0 .
Web links
- Information on the Eastern Blind Vole with distribution map in the IUCN Red List , accessed on March 3, 2009
- Spalax microphthalmus in the Red List of Endangered Species of the IUCN 2013.1. Posted by: Tsytsulina, K., Formozov, N., Zagorodnyuk, I. & Sheftel, B., 2008. Retrieved September 28, 2013.