Pearl pebbles
| Pearl pebbles | ||||||||||||
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Pearly pebble ( Spermophilus suslicus ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Spermophilus suslicus | ||||||||||||
| ( Güldenstädt , 1770) |
The perlziesel ( Spermophilus suslicus ) is a type of squirrel from the genus of the ground squirrel ( Spermophilus ). It occurs in parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe from eastern Poland via the Ukraine to Russia and was first scientifically described by Johann Anton Güldenstädt in 1770 .
features
With a head-trunk length of about 18 to 26 centimeters and a tail length of about 3.6 to 5.7 centimeters and a weight of 180 to 220 grams, this species is slightly smaller than the European ground squirrel . The back is light gray to dark or chestnut brown and covered with clear, light sand-colored to white and wide spots, which, however, can be less noticeable regionally. The chest area and throat are cinnamon to ocher, the belly is a little lighter in color. The head is marked with small, light spots, there is a light eye ring around the eyes and a chestnut brown spot below the eyes on both sides. The tail is shorter and not as hairy as that of the European ground squirrel. It is grayish brown to black at the base of the tail, sometimes with a reddish wash, and has a lighter underside. The tip of the tail is frosted white or straw yellow.
| 1 | · | 0 | · | 2 | · | 3 | = 22 |
| 1 | · | 0 | · | 1 | · | 3 |
The type, like all species of the genus in the upper jaw half per one to a incisor tooth formed incisor (incisor) to which a tooth gap ( diastema follows). This is followed by two premolars and three molars . In contrast, the animals have only one premolar in the lower jaw. In total, the animals have a set of 22 teeth.
distribution
The Perlziesel is native to parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe from east Poland via Ukraine to Russia and south to Moldova , the distribution area extends in the north to the Oka and in the west to the Volga . In Belarus there is an isolated population of the animals. In Poland, the species occurs only on the western edge of its range in a relict occurrence in the far east of the country in the region around Zamość between the Wieprz and the Bug . The height distribution of this lowland species reaches a maximum of 500 meters.
Way of life
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The animals prefer open grasslands and mainly populate steppes and meadows of the flatlands, but also occur on pastures, fallow land and in the area of grain fields.
The pearl diatom is diurnal and feeds mainly herbivore on seeds of the grasses and also grain, sometimes they also prey on insects and even small vertebrates. Only very rarely do they store the food reserves in their burrow, which consists of widely branched corridors. In addition, the animals dig short and shallow escape tunnels. The animals are territorial and, depending on their sex, form territories, which, however, are sometimes used by several individuals. The territories range in size from 0.013 to 0.055 hectares. The territories of the males are larger than those of the females and accordingly overlap with several of them, especially in spring during the breeding season or when the females raise their young in the burrow. Reproductive behavior is conditionally monogamous and becomes polygamous when several females pool and share their territories.
The animals hibernate from September or August to February or March of the following year. The breeding season, which takes place only once a year, begins immediately after hibernation in spring, with the animals showing aggressive territorial behavior. After a gestation period of 22 to 27 days, the females give birth to a litter of three to eight young in the burrow. The young leave the den in June to July. The males in particular then move far away from their birth structure.
The mortality during hibernation varies depending on the temperatures and the snow thickness, it may be in the extreme to 70% of the animals. More than half of the young die within their first year of life, while animals born later die significantly more often in winter. Also of infanticide by adult animals occurs. Adult animals survive winter better and can live up to six years. Regionally, there can be high inbreeding rates due to the isolated populations . The predators of the pearlsiesel include martens, foxes and birds of prey. The Perlziesel give off alarm calls in case of danger, which can be very variable and usually consist of high and loud whistles and calls. The calls of the young animals hardly differ from those of the adult animals.
Regionally, the species can hybridize with the small ground squirrel ( Spermophilus pygmaeus ) or the European ground squirrel ( Spermophilus citellus ) as well as with the red and yellow ground squirrel ( Spermophilus major ) in the extreme east of the range .
Systematics
The Perlziesel is classified as an independent species within the genus of the ground squirrel ( Spermophilus ), which according to the current status consists of 15 species following a revision of the genus. The first scientific description comes from the Russian zoologist Johann Anton Güldenstädt from 1770, who described the species using individuals from the area around Voronezh in the Voronezh Oblast in Russia.
Within the species, together with the nominate form, three subspecies are distinguished:
- Spermophilus suslicus suslicus: nominate form; lives in the southern part of the distribution area
- Spermophilus suslicus boristhenicus: lives in the western part of the range, especially in Ukraine. The color is strong, the spots are only indistinctly visible.
- Spermophilus suslicus guttatus: in the northern part of the range. The subspecies is comparatively dark in color.
Status, threat and protection
The Perlziesel is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) as a type of warning list (Near threatened). This is justified by the clearly noticeable decline in stocks over the past 50 years, although the rate of decline has slowed in the past 10 years. The population decline due to the still increasing loss of habitat and the fragmentation of the landscape is still present, so a potential threat to the species can be assumed.
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The main threat to the populations is the transformation of their habitats into agricultural, settlement and industrial areas and the associated islanding of the available habitats. Regionally, however, the populations can also grow so strongly that they are viewed as an agricultural pest.
The European Union lists the European Union as a priority species in Annexes II and IV of the Habitats Directive and is therefore a species of community interest that must be strictly protected, for whose preservation special protected areas must be designated by the member states. Various perlziesel distribution areas, including the airport area of Lublin-Świdnik Airport , which is home to around 50% of the Polish population, are also covered by the Natura 2000 network for the protection of the perlziesel species.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 300-301. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
- ^ Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Spermophilus. 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. 193.
- ↑ a b c d Spermophilus suslicus in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015.4. Posted by: I. Zagorodnyuk, Z. Glowacinski, A. Gondek, 2008. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
- ↑ a b c Spermophilus suslicus In: Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): 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 .
- ↑ Kristofer M. Helgen, F. Russell Cole, Lauren E. Helgen, Don E. Wilson: Generic Revision in the holarctic ground squirrels genus Spermophilus. Journal of Mammalogy 90 (2), 2009; Pp. 270-305. doi : 10.1644 / 07-MAMM-A-309.1
- ↑ Zieselschutz , www.airport.lublin.pl, accessed on July 1, 2014.
literature
- Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 311-313. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
Web links
- Spermophilus suslicus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015.4. Posted by: I. Zagorodnyuk, Z. Glowacinski, A. Gondek, 2008. Retrieved February 14, 2016.