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