Tunisian garden dormouse
| Tunisian garden dormouse | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Eliomys munbyanus | ||||||||||||
| ( Pomel , 1856) |
The Tunisian garden dormouse or North African spoonbill ( Eliomys munbyanus ) is a species of garden dormouse . It occurs in northern Africa in the area of the Mediterranean and North African Atlantic coast.
features
The Tunisian garden dormouse is a medium-sized dormouse, it reaches a head-trunk length of about 11.0 to 14.0 centimeters, plus a tail that is about 9.6 to 11.8 centimeters long. The weight is 42 to 62 grams. The rear foot length is 22 to 27 millimeters, the ear length 20 to 27 millimeters. The medium-length fur is very soft and often woolly, the hair is 10 to 11 millimeters in length and the outer hair can be up to 16 millimeters long. The dorsal fur is reddish or yellowish-brown and interspersed with gray, the clearly separated peritoneum is white and also interspersed with gray. The head color corresponds to the back color and becomes paler towards the muzzle. The eyes are large, the dark eye mask is clearly defined. The cheeks are cream-colored to white and merge into a light side stripe that extends over the shoulders. The ears are moderately large and oval in shape, with mostly reddish-brown postauricular spots behind them. The hind feet are white. The tail is long with a length of 92% of the head-trunk length; it is reddish to yellowish-brown at the base and then black on the top and either monochrome pale-gray or brown-white on the underside or reddish to yellowish-brown at the base and then black like the top. The tip of the tail is white. The hair is very short at the base of the tail with a length of about 3 to 4 millimeters, and at the end of the tail with a length of up to 19 millimeters. Although no subspecies are differentiated, there are regional differences in color and body proportions.
The skull has an average total length of 33.6 millimeters (31.7 to 35.6 millimeters) and an average width of 19.5 millimeters (18.6 to 20.1 millimeters). The snout region is short with an average of 14.7 millimeters, the palatal window is comparatively long with an average of 4.3 millimeters. The upper row of teeth is also comparatively short with an average length of 4.7 millimeters. The bullae are flattened with 10.2 millimeters in length relatively long and easily.
The Tunisian garden dormouse differs from the very similar spoonbill ( Eliomys melanurus ), which occurs in the coastal area of Libya and Egypt and from there on the Sinai Peninsula and in the Middle East to Turkey and Iraq , the Tunisian garden dormouse is a little smaller. The drawing is very similar, but the postauricular spots are often only indistinct and the tail is darker in color. Both species do not occur sympatric , even if both can be found in Libya.
Distribution and habitats
The Tunisian garden dormouse occurs in northern Africa in the Maghreb region on the Mediterranean and North African Atlantic coasts. He lives in the states of Morocco and the territory of Western Sahara , Tunisia , Algeria , and Libya .
The animals live mainly in the area of bushland of the Gentiles , covered in vegetation by strawberry trees ( Arbutus ), heather ( Calluna ) and heathers ( Erica ) and stone Linden ( Phillyrea ), pistachio ( Pistacia ), myrtle ( Myrtus ) and fan palms ( Chamaerops ) are coined. There are also young cork oaks and oak mixed forests, pine plantations , dry and overgrazed pastures with single acacia , oases and date palms and Tamariskenbestände or in the range of Opuntia ( Opuntia ). Other sites are in dune areas, cedar forests in mountain regions and in agricultural areas.
Way of life
The Tunisian garden dormouse is nocturnal and primarily arboreal, it rarely comes to the ground. It is omnivorous and feeds mainly on fruits, insects, snails, seeds and occasionally bird eggs. In parts of the distribution area, including Tunisia, it is considered a pest because it also lives in fruit plantations, especially pomegranate plantations, as well as in vegetable gardens with peppers , eggplants and other vegetables, where it feeds on the crops and also eats he also has chicken eggs. Depending on the outside temperature, the animals overwinter in a sleep-like hibernation , but individual animals could also be caught in winter at temperatures below 0 ° C. The nests are created in tree hollows, bushes, crevices, caves and under large stones, as well as in roofs, attics, alcoves, cellars and pipelines. They are built from a variety of materials, including straw, grass, palm fronds, goat hair, wool from sheep and camels, and fruit stands from acacias.
The animals are usually solitary animals, the breeding season is in spring and regionally in autumn. The litter size is usually four to six young animals. These remain in the maternal nest for a period of about seven weeks before leaving the nest.
Systematics
The Tunisian garden dormouse is classified as an independent species within the genus of the garden dormouse ( Eliomys ) within the dormouse (Gliridae), which consists of three species. The first scientific description comes from the French paleontologist and zoologist Auguste Pomel from 1856, who described the species on the basis of individuals from the province of Oran in the north-west of Algeria. He originally described the species in the genus Myoxus , today a synonym for Glis , later the species was synonymous with the garden dormouse ( Eliomys quercinus ) and the spoonbill ( Eliomys melanurus ). For individual regional forms, it was proposed to separate them into separate species. Synonyms for the species are E. denticulatus Ranck , 1968, E. lerotina Lataste , 1885, E. occidentalis Thomas , 1903 and E. tunetae Thomas , 1903.
Apart from the nominate form, no subspecies are distinguished within the species .
Status, threat and protection
The Tunisian garden dormouse is listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified by the large area of distribution, the large numbers of stocks and the lack of risks that could endanger the existence. The populations are considered stable, although the density of animals in their habitats is relatively low.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Mary Ellen Holden: Eliomys munbyanus, Maghreb Garden Dormouse. In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume III. Rodents, Hares and Rabbits. Bloomsbury, London 2013, pp. 107-108; ISBN 978-1-4081-2253-2 .
- ↑ a b c Eliomys munbyanus in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015.3. Posted by: G. Amori, S. Aulagnier, R. Hutterer, B. Kryštufek, N. Yigit, G. Mitsain, LJ Palomo, 2008. Accessed November 25, 2015.
- ↑ a b c Eliomys munbyanus ( Memento of the original from November 25, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . 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: Eliomys munbyanus, Maghreb Garden Dormouse. In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume III. Rodents, Hares and Rabbits. Bloomsbury, London 2013, pp. 107-108; ISBN 978-1-4081-2253-2 .
Web links
- Eliomys munbyanus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015.3. Posted by: G. Amori, S. Aulagnier, R. Hutterer, B. Kryštufek, N. Yigit, G. Mitsain, LJ Palomo, 2008. Accessed November 25, 2015.