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Mouselike
Hamster Article by
Russell Tofts
For a number of reasons,
the six species of Mouselike Hamster are arguably the most unusual of
all hamsters. The first thing you notice about this hamster is that it
bears a tail that is longer than its body (other species of hamsters,
of course, have very short tails). It also lacks that most characteristic
asset of hamsters, the cheek pouch. Although not a highly social animal,
it nonetheless does seem prepared to tolerate other individuals of the
same species, in contrast to many other hamsters which are firmly antisocial.
So atypical is it from all other hamsters, that it is placed in the subfamily
Sigmodontinae (or the Calomyscinae; opinions vary), rather than in the
Cricetinae to which the majority of hamsters belong.
Mammalogist fail
to agree on how many species of Mouselike Hamster exist. The current consensus
is that there are half a dozen species, of which the commonest in captivity
appears to be Calomyscus mystax - popularly known as the Iranian or Afghan
Mouselike Hamster - and C. bailwardi, but some experts recognise only
one species (C. bailwardi) which, they say, incorporates all the others.
There is much to be said for this argument, since all the species occupy
roughly the same geographical area and several species' ranges do overlap.
Being something of a 'lumper' rather than a 'splitter', I find myself
erring towards the view that most species of Mouselike Hamster are not
sufficiently distinct from one another to justify full species status
and, in my opinion, should be thought of as merely subspecies. Everyone
agrees that much more work is urgently needed in this area.
Mouselike Hamsters
have been, and perhaps still are, used in Russian laboratories, and have
appeared in U.K. collections only comparatively recently following the
importation of animals by zoological gardens.
Description
A small animal. Head
+ body length 60-98 mm; tail length 70-102 mm; weight 15-30g. As its name
suggests, this animal bears a strong resemblance to a mouse, not only
with regard to its diminutive size and long tail (albeit thickly furred
and terminating in a tufted point, unlike a mouse's typically hairless
tail), but also with its very conspicuous, large and erect ears, which
are distinctly unhamster-like. The silky coat is pinkish buff, sandy brown
or greyish brown on the upper parts. The belly is white, as are the legs
and feet. The tail is dark above and white below. The hind legs are long,
not dissimilar in appearance to a gerbil's but more attenuated. As stated
above, cheek pouches are absent. Females possess six mammae.
Distribution
Calomyscus bailwardi
(Mouselike Hamster) - central and southwestern Iran, Caucasus, Turkmenistan,
Afghanistan, northern Pakistan; Natural Habitat
Found mostly at elevations
of between 400-3,500 metres on barren, scorched hills that offer numerous
narrow crevices in which to secrete themselves, but in monsoon areas forsake
this desiccated terrain in favour of hillsides clothed in evergreen oaks.
The habitat associated with this animal may be the reason it lacks cheek
pouches, because unlike other hamsters it is less likely to be caught
in the open by predators - there is usually a crevice nearby into which
it can vanish - and therefore there is less need for food to be transported
back to the relative safety of the burrow to be consumed.
Social Structure
In the wild, individuals
frequently share favourable shelter sites, where they huddle together
for warmth. Captives, too, sleep huddled together like this and, although
it cannot be thought of as truly social, in captivity it lives happily
in pairs or even trios if the area is sufficiently large. I have kept
a non-breeding trio in a 36" glass tank for well over a year, and I have
never witnessed any aggression between individuals. Compare this with
the behaviour of other hamster species. A pair of Syrian Hamsters, for
example, can never be kept together, except when young or very briefly
when the female is 'on heat', and, although other species like the Chinese,
Roborovski and Dwarf Russian Hamsters will live as pairs for much of the
time, the peace is very unstable and one has to be constantly alert to
signs of fighting.
Temperament
Like most small rodents,
the Mouselike Hamster does not enjoy being handled but, in my experience,
never attempts to bite.
Behaviour
It does not seem
to be as exclusively nocturnal in the wild as most other rodents. Admittedly,
during the summer months it is active only during the hours of darkness,
but in autumn and winter it can be seen foraging by day as well. This
may be because less food is available at this time of year and more time
needs to be spent in trying to obtain it if the animal is not to starve.
Captive animals are very curious and quick to come out to investigate
sudden noises in the vicinity of the cage. They are adept at climbing.
One peculiarity of
this animal which, I confess, I have not witnessed myself, is what appears
to be mutual-feeding. Some keepers record seeing individuals feeding each
other. An animal will nuzzle the mouth of another that has just been feeding,
until it opens its mouth sufficiently for the first animal to take food
from inside. Adult animals have even been known to feed nursing females
that refuse to leave their new-born babies to venture out to find food
for themselves. I must admit I do have my doubts about this.
Locomotion
Mouselike Hamsters
move fast and can jump at least 12" in height. When running at speed,
the tail is carried slightly clear of the ground.
Vocalisation
Mostly silent. Communicates
in a series of high-pitched twitterings.
Sexing
The anal-genital
distance is approximately twice as wide in the male, compared with the
female.
Accommodation
The best type of
housing is a large glass aquarium with a well-fitting, secure, mesh lid.
A glass tank 4 ft x 1.5 ft x 1.5 ft high is certainly not too big for
this very active animal. Although the accommodation I provide for these
rodents is smaller than this, it is equipped with a second 'floor'. Other
people have kept them quite successfully in laboratory-type cages but
these have a major disadvantage that they are not big enough. The substrate
can be of sand or phenol-free wood shavings. It need not be very deep
as these animals rarely show any inclination to want to burrow. A generous
quantity of cage 'furniture' should be provided in the form of rocks,
tubes, branches, boxes, cardboard rolls, coconut shell, etc. if stereotypic
behaviour is to be avoided. Strips of non-bleached paper can be provided
for bedding. Provide a dish of chinchilla sand every few days, as these
animals enjoy a dust bath and it helps to keep the soft, fine coat in
tip-top condition.
Diet
Omnivorous. In the
wild, Mouselike Hamsters feed on seeds, flowers and leaves. Although seeds
and plant matter comprise the bulk of the diet, it is not above adding
animal matter to the menu on occasion, and readily consumes insects and
even carrion. In captivity a good basic diet consists of the following
mixture (all in roughly equal quantities):-
Rodent breeder pellets To this can be added
small quantities of fresh fruit or vegetables, as well as such treat items
as cooked rice or egg. Mine display a penchant for slices of apple and
generally receive some every other day. Bristol Zoo offers its Mouselike
Hamsters a small amount of dried fruit soaked in liquid paraffin to prevent
constipation. Insects such as crickets or meal-worms that have been dusted
with a multi-vitamin powder can be given two or three times a week and
are much appreciated, in particular crickets as these prove a little more
difficult for the hamsters to catch, thus providing occupational therapy.
Clean, fresh water is essential, even though these animals do not appear
to drink a great deal.
Breeding
A seasonal breeder
in the wild. The breeding season, both in captivity and in its natural
habitat, appears to be quite long, commencing in late March and lasting
for most of the rest of the year. Some books erroneously state that it
breeds only until early June, but this appears to be untrue, or at least
not always the case, as field workers in Iran have found pregnant females
in July, half grown males in early August, and lactating females in August
and December. Since the young develop at a much slower pace than all other
hamster species, I am wondering whether late breeding is a result of the
previous litter being lost to predators or the vagaries of the weather.
It is also possible that the length of the breeding season varies according
to species and geographical range. In captivity, where the animal has
an extended photoperiod and does not experience the harsh weather conditions
it would in the wild, it is as likely to breed throughout the year.
Two litters per year
are the norm. The female makes a ball-like nest from fine grasses and
sheep's wool, not dissimilar from a Harvest Mouse nest, in narrow horizontal
crevices on rocky outcrops. In captivity a coconut shell or hollow log
will be readily utilised for this purpose. The gestation period is approximately
21 days. Three to five young are born in an average litter, but in exceptional
cases there can be as many as seven.
The young are born
naked and blind. Eyes open at around 13 days. The youngsters' first coat
is grey in colour. Weaning starts at about 17 days, and the young are
independent at 21-30 days. They become sexual mature quite late, at 116
days, but are unlikely to breed at this age. The first coat moults out
at about 6-8 months of age, to be replaced by their adult coat. They are
fully grown by this age, too.
Health
Care should be exercised
when applying certain medications on these animals. I know of one female
breeder whose vet prescribed a chemical spray of some description (I know
not what sort, presumably an anti-fungal or anti-mite spray) to combat
severe alopecia that was affecting three of her animals. This unexplained
hair loss had started on the head area of each animal and progressed until
all three animals were almost completely bald, and what little fur remained
on each animal had what she described as a 'damp' appearance to it. Fortunately
my friend tried the spray on just one of the affected animals and not
the entire group, because the animal suddenly collapsed soon afterwards
and died within three hours of receiving the treatment. Now I don't know
whether this was just a coincidence, or whether the spray provoked an
allergic reaction. Nor do I know whether this specimen was just unfortunate
or whether insecticidal/fungicidal sprays affect all Mouselike Hamsters
in the same way. Perhaps the veterinary surgeon simply got the dosage
wrong (an all-too-easy thing to do with such a small animal), and perhaps,
at a smaller dose, the animal would have been fine. But I include this
story as a cautionary tale to be wary of using topical sprays on this
animal.
Life Span
2+ years.
Conservation Status
Unclear and contradictory.
Rarely seen in the wild today, some field workers warn that the Mouselike
Hamster may even be approaching extinction in the wild, although others
report it to be relatively abundant. Until more field studies are undertaken,
we must conclude sadly that of the six species, Hotson's Mouselike Hamster
is endangered, and at least three others (the Afghan, Urartsk, and Tsolov's
Mouselike Hamsters) are Near Threatened. For this reason, it is essential
that more people try to breed this interesting taxa in captivity. There
is still much about them we do not know, and non-invasive observations
of captive animals may provide us with this information.
Article
by Alex Eames Description A Mouse-like hamster at first glance might be mistaken
for your average house mouse (Mus musculus), they possess a thick sandy
grey/brown coat with a shiny buff appearance. One of the most obvious
features of mouse-like hamsters are their unusually large and erect ears.
Unlike true hamsters the mouse-like hamster possesses no cheek pouches
and has a long fur covered tail. Geographical Distribution Mouse-like hamsters prefer arid conditions and will live in rocky out crops and crevices. Handling Diet I feed my Mouse-like hamsters a basic mix of: As well as their basic mix they are also given small amounts of fruit and vegetables a few times a week and are fed mealworms and crickets several times a week. Housing Sawdust
or other commercial substrates are fine although more natural substrates
such as sand can be used with great success. Mouse-like hamsters are extremely
good at climbing and will appreciate lots of branches and cork tubing
to scramble around on. The young are born naked and blind. Eyes open at around 13 days. The juveniles first coat is grey in colour. Weaning starts at about 17 days, and the young are independent at 21–30 days. They become sexual mature quite late, at 116 days, but are unlikely to breed at this age. The first coat moults out at about 6–8 months of age, to be replaced by their adult coat. Lifespan |
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