Meriones unguiculatus
(Redirected from Mongolian Gerbil)
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| Meriones unguiculatus Milne-Edwards, 1867 |
Meriones unguiculatus is a rodent belonging to subfamily Gerbillinae. They are the most widely known species of the Gerbil subfamily. Often called the Mongolian Gerbil or Mongolian Jird, due to its original habitat (Mongolia), it is the primary gerbil species to have been made a pet. Similar to the hamster, it was first brought to the United States in 1954 by Dr. Victor Schwentker for use in research.
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Origin
The gerbil species Meriones unguiculatus originally developed on the semi-deserts and steppes of Mongolia. There, they developed long legs for jumping and running from predators, teeth to deal with hard seeds and plant matter, and water conservation techniques that allow them to survive in the arid climate, such as storing water in layers of fat cells. Mongolian gerbils do not have many natural enemies due to the harsh climate. Most predators are birds-of-prey or snakes. Mongolian gerbils are diurnal, but return to their burrows for the coldest and hottest parts of the day.
Habitat
The species Meriones unguiculatus came originally from Mongolia. Their habitat in Mongolia is mainly semi-deserts and steppes. Soil on the steppes is sandy and is covered with grasses, herbs, and shrubs. The steppes have cool, dry winters and hot summers. The temperature can get up to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit), but the average temperature for most of the year is around 20 °C (68 °F).
In the wild these gerbils live in groups generally consisting of one parental pair and the last few litters. Only the dominant female and male produce pups. One group of gerbils generally ranges over 325 to 1550 square meters (0.08 to 0.38 acre).
A group lives in a central burrow with 10-20 exits. Some deeper burrows with only 1-3 exits in their territory may exist. These deeper burrows are used to escape from predators when they are too far from the central burrow.They make great pets for a first time pet owner.
History
The first known mention of gerbils came in 1866, by Father Armand David, who sent "yellow rats" to the Museum of Natural History (Musée d'Histoire Naturelle) in Paris, from northern China. They were named Meriones unguiculatus by the scientist Milne-Edwards in 1867. This Latin name means "clawed warrior" in English, partly from the Greek warrior Meriones in Homer's Iliad.
Gerbils only became popular pets after 1954, when twenty breeding pairs of gerbils were brought to the United States from eastern Mongolia for scientific testing. Almost all pet gerbils today are descended from these forty. Gerbils were brought to the United Kingdom in 1964 from the United States.
Gerbils as Pets
Gerbils are rather popular pets, due to their gentle-towards-humans temperament and hardy nature.
Because the Mongolian Gerbil is a very social creature, it is recommended that they be kept in pairs in captivity; one reason being that multiple gerbils tend to groom each other, or engage in other social activities. Therefore, gerbils generally lead poorer lives without a companion.
When selecting a gerbil as a pet, it is important to select a young and healthy-looking animal. Important criteria include having clear eyes, ears and nostrils, a shiny coat, and a robust body shape. Gerbils that display their inquisitive nature are a better choice than ones that prefer hanging back in a corner.
When choosing your pets, it is obviously important to know their genders. This can be difficult, because it's often quite tricky trying to determine a gerbil's sex.
Typically, a male-male or female-female pairing of gerbils from the same litter is the best choice. Placing a male and a female in an enclosure will lead to an inevitable population boom, one that may tax the abilities of even experienced owners.
Also, females are somewhat more competitive with each other than males, and skirmishes may occur from time to time if two females are placed together. Usually however, the two will live together contentedly, and rarely are disputes serious enough to warrant separation of the pair.
Males placed together tend to get along quite well, and the aforementioned skirmishes are rarer between them.
Please remember that gerbils born into the same litter are your best bet when selecting a pair. Attempting to introduce gerbils from different litters may be successful when done at a very early age. After reaching maturity however, it can be extremely difficult to get a gerbil to accept a new companion, even if they are siblings.
Lastly, while a pair of gerbils is recommended, larger numbers can be housed together. However, enclosure size is a big factor, and trying to place three females, regardless of whether they are littermates, can be dangerous, as disputes often break out over which of the three is the dominant female.
When housing all males, three will usually live together without much or any hostility between them.
There are a number of options available when selecting an enclosure for gerbils. The most commonly seen are wire cages, vivariums, or tube-based habitats such as Habitrail. The best choice is usually a glass or acrylic aquarium tank, which allows a thick layer of substrate to be placed. This allows gerbils to burrow as they would naturally. An aquarium tank is also sturdy and safe, and helps alleviate problems such as drafts.
A 10 gallon aquarium tank is suitable for a pair of gerbils, although the larger 15 and 20 gallon sizes are preferable. A 20 gallon tank or larger comfortably fits three.
Once an enclosure has been selected, the next step is to choose a substrate, or “bedding”. Choices include corncob bedding, commercially available small animal substrate, peat or Aspen wood shavings. Despite the ready availability and economy of Pine and Cedar bedding, you should not use it for any type of small animal. Both contain added scents, as well as toxic dust which can cause serious harm or death in many small animals.
Although the Mongolian Gerbil is a desert animal, they require fresh water at all times. Because of the gerbil’s active nature, it would be risky to place a dish or bowl of water in an enclosure, because it would likely be knocked over or filled with bedding very quickly. Instead, use an easily accessible water bottle. Bottles are custom made fit into many types of habitats.
Food can be given through a relatively inexpensive dry food mix, many of which are easily found at grocery and pet stores, often labeled as “Hamster and Gerbil” food. Occasionally supplementing the dry food with a select few types of fresh vegetables, like broccoli, is a good idea. However, some gerbils are finicky, and will simply ignore the offerings. When fresh vegetables or fruits are provided, be sure to clean out any uneaten portions after an hour or two. Also, some fresh produce such as cucumber should never be offered because of the risk of providing too much water for a gerbil's system to handle, resulting in diarrhea-like droppings.
Gerbil teeth, like the teeth of any rodent, grow constantly, so it is highly important to provide things for them to gnaw on. This wears the teeth down, keeping their growth in check. Wooden “toys” are offered at many pet stores for this purpose. There are many other things to offer gerbils too, such as the tube from a roll of paper towels. Please make sure that the tubes do not have an excessive amount of glue, because this may potentially harm a gerbil's digestive tract.
Major Colors
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- Golden Agouti — All Mongolian Gerbils in the wild are Golden Agouti, also called Agouti. The hairshafts on the back are grey at the base, gold in the middle and tipped with black, making an even mix of golden brown with black ticking. The belly is creamy white. Spotted individuals (which are not found in nature) are slightly lighter. An Agouti gerbil has black eyes.
- Black — A Black gerbil is black both on its back and on its belly. It most often has a "bib" or white line running down its chin. It also may have some white on its paws. Any white on the belly is due to spotting and will be irregularly shaped in most cases. A Black gerbil has black eyes.
- Argente Golden — An Argente Golden gerbil is orange with a white belly. It has deep ruby eyes. If one were to brush back the fur on its back, one would see that the roots are grey. The spotted variety is slightly lighter than the solid variety.
- Argente Cream — An Argente Cream gerbil is an Argente lightened by a Himalayan gene, c(h). It is light orange with a white belly and ruby eyes.
- Topaz — A Topaz gerbil is an Argente lightened by a gene called Chinchilla Medium, c(chm), formerly called Burmese, c(b). This color is lighter than an Argente Golden but darker than an Argente Cream, and it often has slightly darker points at the ears, nose and tail. It has ruby eyes.
- Lilac — A Lilac gerbil is medium to dark grey all over. It has ruby eyes.
- Dove — A Dove gerbil is a Lilac lightened by the Himalayan gene, c(h). It is an even light grey all over. It has ruby eyes.
- Sapphire — A Sapphire gerbil is a Lilac lightened by a gene called Chinchilla Medium, c(chm), formerly called Burmese, c(b). This color is lighter than a Lilac but darker than a Dove, and it often has slightly darker points at the ears, nose and tail. It has ruby eyes.
- Pink Eyed White — A Pink Eyed White gerbil is completely white with light ruby eyes.
- Burmese — for the first part of its life, a Burmese gerbil is a dark chocolate color both on its back and on its belly. At eight weeks, it molts and the tail, nose, feet and tips of the ear go black while the main body color stays the same. Often has a "bib" or white line running down the chin. It also may have some white on its paws. Spotted Burmese gerbils are slightly lighter in color. All Burmese gerbils have black eyes.
- Siamese — A Siamese gerbil starts out a light mushroom beige color. At eight weeks, it molts and the tail, nose, feet and tips of the ear go black. The main body color stays the same. A Siamese has black eyes. It also often has a "bib" or white line running down the chin. May also have some white on the paws. Spotted individuals are slightly lighter in color.
- Colorpoint Golden Agouti — A Colorpoint Golden Agouti has a white base with a liberal amount of silvery-brownish ticking along the back. The belly is white and the eyes are black.
- Light Colorpoint Golden Agouti — A Light Colorpoint Golden Agouti has a white base with a small amount of silvery-brownish ticking along the back. Its belly is white and its eyes are black.
- Grey Agouti — The hairs on the back of a Grey Agouti are dark grey with white in the middle, making an even salt-and-pepper look. The belly is greyish white. Spotted individuals are slightly lighter. Grey Agouti's have black eyes and are also known as Chinchillas.
- Slate — A Slate gerbil is a dark greyish black color. Often has a "bib" or white line running down the chin. It may also have some white on the paws. Any white on the belly is due to spotting and will be irregularly shaped in most cases. A Slate has black eyes with a reddish reflective shine in bright light or flash.
- Ivory Cream — An Ivory Cream gerbil is yellowish-cream colored on its back with a light cream belly. It has ruby eyes.
- Ruby Eyed White — A Ruby-Eyed White gerbil is white all over. It has ruby eyes. Also known as Red Eyed White.
- Dark Eyed Honey — A Dark Eyed Honey gerbil starts out with a bright orange back with a white belly and flanks. At 8 weeks it molts and a small amount of black ticking appears along its back. A Dark Eyed Honey has black eyes.
- Nutmeg — A Nutmeg gerbil starts out with a bright orange color over its entire body. At 8 weeks it molts and liberal black ticking appears along the back with a lesser amount on the belly, changing the color to a bright brown. A Nutmeg gerbil has black eyes.
- Silver Nutmeg — A Silver Nutmeg gerbil starts out a creamy ivory color. At 8 weeks the gerbil molts and the hairs become whiter and liberal greyish ticking appears along the back with a lesser amount on the belly. A Silver Nutmeg gerbil has black eyes.
- Yellow Fox — A Yellow Fox gerbil has a bright orange back with a white belly and flanks. It has ruby eyes.
- Light Yellow Fox — A Light Yellow Fox is a light creamy orangish color, with a white belly. It has ruby eyes.
- Red Fox — A Red Fox is a bright orange color over its entire body, with the color lightening somewhat through the belly area. Often there is a "bib" or white line running down the chin. There may also be some white on the paws. Any white on the belly is due to spotting and will be irregularly shaped in most cases. A Red Fox has ruby eyes.
- Light Red Fox — A Light Red Fox is a light creamy red color over its entire body, with the color lightening somewhat through the belly area. It often has a "bib" or white line running down the chin. It may also have some white on its paws. Any white on the belly is due to spotting and will be irregularly shaped in most cases. A Light Red Fox has ruby eyes.
- Polar Fox — A Polar Fox starts out a creamy ivory color. At 8 weeks the gerbil molts and the hairs become whiter and minimal greyish ticking appears along the back. A Polar Fox has black eyes.
- Schimmel — A Schimmel gerbil starts out an orange color. At eight weeks old it molts and the body lightens to a creamy white. The gerbil's body continues to lighten throughout its life until it has a white body. The tail, nose, feet and tips of the ears remain creamy orange. Schimmel gerbils can have black or red eyes.
- Black Eyed White — A Black Eyed White gerbil is completely white with black eyes. Some have greyish ear tips and dark claws.
References
- Baillie (1996). Meriones unguiculatus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
External links
- e-Gerbil (extremely thorough, coat colour reference guides, species info and forum)
- The National Gerbil Society (U.K.)
- The American Gerbil Society
- Gerbil Photo Directory Public domain photographs of all major Mongolian Gerbil types.
Categories
Gerbils | Animals kept as pets | Mammals of Asia