Mouse-like hamster
The mouse hamsters (Calomyscus) are a genus of the mice-like, which is widespread in Western Asia. They have nothing in common with hamsters in appearance, but may be related to them. The classification of this genus is still largely unclear.
The following eight types are distinguished:
- Zagros mouse hamster, Calomyscus bailwardi Thomas 1905, central Iran
- Baluchistan mouse hamster, Calomyscus baluchi Thomas 1920, Baluchistan
- Goodwin's Persian mouse hamster, Calomyscus elbruzensis Goodwin, 1938, northern Iran, western Afghanistan and southern Turkmenistan
- noble mouse hamster, Calomyscus grandis Schlitter & Setzer, 1973, Elburs mountains in northern Iran
- Hotson's mouse hamster, Calomyscus hotsoni Thomas 1920, southeastern Iran and southwestern Pakistan
- Afghan mouse hamster, Calomyscus mystax Kashkarov 1925, northern Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan
- Tsolov mouse hamster, Calomyscus tsolovi Peshev 1991, southwestern Syria
- Urartu mouse hamster, Calomyscus urartensis Vorontsov & Kartavtseva 1979, Iranian part of Caucasus
Sometimes, however, also all mouse-hamsters are assigned to a single type, that is called Calomyscus bailwardi then.
Mouse hamsters look mouse-like. They have a head-torso length of seven to nine centimeters, with an additional eight to ten centimeters of tail. They are sandy or grayish brown on top and white underneath. The large ears are conspicuous.
Habitat are both semi-deserts and steppes, as well as forests at altitudes between 400 and 3500 meters. Mouse hamsters are nocturnal and feed on seeds and other plant material. During the day they hide in burrows. Since they cannot dig well themselves, they often use abandoned burrows of other animals, for example racing rats.
The systematic position of the mouse hamsters is unclear. They look most similar to the American white-footed mice, which belong to the New World mice. The similarities are so numerous that the mouse hamsters have already been placed among the New World mice by some zoologists, which would make them the only Old World representatives of this circle of relationships. Because of the peculiarities of the dentition, however, a position near the hamsters is more probable. In most systematics, the mouse hamsters stand isolated and are considered as a separate subfamily or family (Calomyscidae).
