Turkish tree sleeper
| Turkish tree sleeper | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Dryomys laniger | ||||||||||||
| Felten & Storch , 1968 |
The Turkish tree dormouse or rock dormouse ( Dryomys laniger ) is a type of tree dormouse within the dormouse (Gliridae). The species lives endemically in parts of Turkey and was delimited in 1969 as an independent species from the tree dormouse ( Dryomys nitedula ), which is widespread over large parts of Eurasia .
features
general characteristics
The Turkish tree dormouse reaches a head-trunk length of about 8.3 to 9.6 centimeters and a tail length of 4.8 to 7.6 centimeters with a weight of 17 to 32 grams. The ear length is 11.3 to 17.4 millimeters and the rear foot length 15.1 to 19 millimeters. A sexual dimorphism is not pronounced, males and females differ according to the outside except for the genitalia not. Within the genus Dryomys , the Turkish tree dormouse is the smallest of the three recognized species and has a relatively short tail compared to the other species.
The back fur of the adult animals is thickly woolly and soft, which is why they have received the name Woolly Forest Dormouse in English-speaking countries. It is colored sand-brown to brown-ash-gray and clearly delimited from the ventral side. The belly side is white to creamy white, with the woolen hair having a dark gray base that is barely visible in the fur. The color of the head corresponds to the color of the back and becomes lighter towards the muzzle, the cheeks are white. A dark face mask and dark spots behind the ears are not formed, but the eyes are surrounded by dark brown circles under the eyes. The eyes themselves are dark brown and elongated. The hind feet are white and shorter than those of related species; they reach a length of about 19% of the head-trunk length. The tail is woolly hairy and corresponds in its coloring on top of the back color; the underside is clearly lighter. There are white hairs spread over the tail and it is frayed on the sides; the tips of the hair at the tail end are white.
The karyotype consists of a chromosome set of 2n = 46 chromosomes. The females have four pairs of teats , one each in the breast and stomach area and two in the lumbar region.
Features of the skull
The skull is small and filigree with a narrow snout region, it has a total length of 22 to 27 millimeters and a width at the zygomatic arches of 13.3 to 15.5 millimeters. The upper row of teeth is 3.2 to 3.8 millimeters long. The strongly inflated tympanic bladders correspond to those of the Pakistan tree dormouse ( Dryomys niethammeri ).
distribution
The Turkish tree dormouse is endemic to Turkey . The distribution area extends over parts of the southwest, the south and the east of the country, where it is mainly found in the western Taurus Mountains and in the east of Anatolia . The altitude distribution ranges from about 1600 to almost 3000 meters.
Way of life
The Turkish tree dormouse specializes in mountainous habitats with rocky and stony habitats and only sparse, largely bushy vegetation above the tree line at high altitudes. It usually lives in the rocky areas and occurs, among other things, in crevices of weathered rocks, caves and stone spaces. In regions of Anatolia where trees are present, it is usually Lebanon cedars ( Cedrus libani ), juniper ( Juniperis exelsa, Juniperis foetidissima, Juniperis oxycedrus ), Mediterranean cypresses ( Cupressus sempervirens ), Cilician firs ( Abies cilicica ) and Kermes oaks ( Quercus coccifera ).
The animals are nocturnal and overwinter in a hibernation . They feed omnivorously with a preference for insects. Stomach examinations of 19 animals revealed only insects and other arthropods in 13 and additional berries from olive-like daphne ( Daphne oleoides ) in 6 . Animals kept in captivity eat cat food with nuts, sunflower seeds, fresh apples, and fresh pears.
Most females become pregnant once a year and give birth to 3 to 5 kittens with one litter; some females also abandon individual years. Pregnant females were caught throughout June through early July; Males with swollen testicles almost twice the size of August are also present from mid-June. Lactating females could be detected from late June to mid-August and young animals from mid-August.
Systematics
The Turkish tree dormouse is classified as an independent species within the genus of the tree dormouse ( Dryomys ) within the dormouse , which consists of three species. The first scientific description of the species comes from the German zoologists Heinz Felten and Gerhard Storch from 1968, who described it using individuals from the region around Elmalı in the province of Antalya from an altitude of about 2000 meters.
Apart from the nominate form, no further subspecies are distinguished within the species .
Status, threat and protection
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) does not classify the Turkish tree dormouse in a hazard category due to a lack of data on the stocks, but instead lists it as "data deficient". The range of the species is very fragmented, mainly due to its preference for higher rocky habitats. It is known that some habitats, particularly in the Bolkar Mountains , are affected by mining. The core of the population occurs in the Bolkar and Taurus Mountains ; However, no data are available on the size of the stocks.
There are no known threats to the species' endangerment and it is believed that, although generally rare, it is not exposed to great pressures. The mining industry is a potential threat locally and there are dam building activities especially in Munzur Dağları that will have an impact on the local population. The current climate change is also likely to lead to a greater fragmentation of mountain habitats, in which the habitats are already partially threatened by overgrazing, erosion and increasing tourism.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Mary Ellen Holden-Musser, R. Juškaitis, GM Musser: Woolly Forest Dormouse - Dryomys laniger. In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (Eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6) Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016, p. 886 , ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .
- ↑ a b c d e Dryomys laniger in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2019. Posted by: B. Kryštufek, R. Kennerley, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
- ↑ a b Dryomys laniger . 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 .
literature
- Mary Ellen Holden-Musser, R. Juškaitis, GM Musser: Woolly Forest Dormouse - Dryomys laniger. In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (Eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6) Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016, p. 886 , ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .
Web links
- Dryomys laniger in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2019 Posted by: B. Krystufek, R. Kennerley, 2016. Accessed April 17, 2020th