Snow mice

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Snow mice
Snow mouse (Chionomys nivalis)

Snow mouse ( Chionomys nivalis )

Systematics
Subordination : Mouse relatives (Myomorpha)
Superfamily : Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family : Burrowers (Cricetidae)
Subfamily : Voles (arvicolinae)
Tribe : Arvicolini
Genre : Snow mice
Scientific name
Chionomys
Miller , 1908

The snow mice ( Chionomys ) are a genus of mammals from the voles family .

features

They are comparatively large voles with a long tail that reaches over 50% of the length of the head and trunk . The head-trunk length is 90–156 mm, the tail length 50–108 mm, the length of the hind foot 17.0–27.0 mm and the ear length 13–20 mm. The animals weigh 29-78 g. The fur is soft and fine, the whiskers are very long with at least 35 mm. The females have four pairs of mammary glands .

distribution and habitat

The genus is restricted to the mountains of the southwestern Palearctic , two of the three species are endemic to the Caucasus . The species of the genus are bound to rocky soils and occur in mountains from 500 m to 4700 m altitude, more rarely also in lower altitudes.

Systematics

The species were previously assigned to the genus Microtus , but have been separated as a separate genus due to fossil finds and genetic studies. The genus includes three types:

literature

  • Stéphane Aulagnier, Patrick Haffner, Anthony J. Mitchell-Jones, François Moutou, Jan Zima: The mammals of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. The destination guide. Haupt, Bern et al. 2009, ISBN 978-3-258-07506-8 , pp. 198-199.
  • Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 2 volumes. 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD et al. 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .

Web links

Commons : Chionomys  - collection of images, videos and audio files