Golden hamster

Mesocricetus auratus

A wild hamster of dry farmland around northern Syria, while domesticated descendants are kept worldwide.

Key facts

Golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) is an omnivore animal classified as Mammal · Rodentia · Cricetidae.
Primary habitats are grassland · desert · urban, with a range across Palearctic.
Activity is nocturnal, sociality is solitary, and conservation status is VU (Vulnerable).
A wild hamster of dry farmland around northern Syria, while domesticated descendants are kept worldwide.
Burrows in dry fields, steppe, and rural soils, with the natural range limited to parts of northern Syria and southern Turkey.

Habitat range map

Native rangeOccasional / Transient

Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)

Burrows in dry fields, steppe, and rural soils, with the natural range limited to parts of northern Syria and southern Turkey.

Wild-type animals have golden-brown upperparts, pale underparts, rounded ears, a short tail, and large cheek pouches.

Nocturnal and solitary, it stores food in burrows. Seeds are packed into cheek pouches and carried to storage chambers.

Seeds, grain, herbs, roots, fruit, and insects are eaten, with crop seeds used in farmland.

Litters are born in burrows. Development is rapid, and captive animals can breed at short intervals.

The wild range is narrow and affected by farmland change and collection pressure, so it is treated as Vulnerable.