Eremodipus lichtensteini
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Dipodidae
Eremodipus
Eremodipus lichtensteini

description: 30.
Lichtenstein’s Jerboa
Eremodipus lichtensteini
French: Gerboise de Lichtenstein / German: Lichtenstein-Springmaus / Spanish: Jerbo tridactilo de Lichtenstein
Taxonomy. Scirtopoda lichtensteini Vinogradov, 1927,
Mary, Turkmenistan.
Three subspecies are recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
E.. lichtensteini Vinogradov, 1927 — Karakum and Kyzylkum deserts in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
E.l.balkhashensisShenbrot,1990—SofLakeBalkhashinSEKazakhstan(AlmatyRegion).
E. l. jaxartensis Shenbrot, 1990 — Aral Karakum, N Kyzylkum, Aryskum, and W Moinkum deserts (Kyzylorda and South Kazakhstan regions of S Kazakhstan).
Descriptive notes. Head-body 105-115 mm, tail 135-165 mm, ear 15-19 mm, hindfoot 50-56 mm; weight 33-68 g. Female Lichtenstein’s Jerboas are slightly larger than males. Condylo-basal lengths of skulls are 24-8-28-5 mm, mastoid breadths are 19-7 23 mm, and maxillary tooth row lengths are 4-2-5-3 mm. Head and dorsum are sandy yellow with significant touch of reddish brown; sides and ventral pelage are pure white; and tail banneris narrow and weakly flattened, without white basal ring but with long black subterminal field and short white terminal tuft. Toes of hindfeet are covered from below with brushes of relatively long, firm, and straight white or dirty-gray hairs; toes do not have conic calluses at bases. Auditory bullae are strongly inflated and project from under braincase laterally and caudally. Mastoid cavity is large and partially subdivided into two sections by septa. In volume, mastoid cavity is about two times larger than tympanic cavity. Front surfaces of incisors are white. P' is absent. Molars are high-crowned, with terraced masticatory surfaces; crown heights of unworn molars are 120-190% of their length. Glans penis is massive, cylindrical, significantly elongated, 6-6-5 mm long and 2-5-2-9 mm in diameter, subdivided by deep longitudinal folds into two ventro-lateral, two dorso-lateral lobes and one dorsal lobe; dorso-lateral and dorsal lobes have shallow longitudinal depressions; and surfaces of lobes are covered by two-apex, backward-directed scales. Os penis (baculum) is large (its length about equal to length of glans penis) and straight, with little horizontal broadening at proximal end and clavate node at distal end. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 48 and FN =92.
Habitat. Sandy deserts with relatively dense shrub cover, particularly edges of sand massifs and zone of contact between semi-stabilized and stabilized sand.
Food and Feeding. Diet of Lichtenstein’s Jerboa contains seeds, flowers, and green plant parts. In spring,it eats mainly green plant parts, but in summer, seeds are the main part of the diet. Plant species eaten vary geographically and seasonally; local lists of forage plants include 13-30 species of shrubs and annual and perennial grasses and forbs.
Breeding. Breeding of Lichtenstein’s Jerboa occurs in April-June. Litters have 2-9 young (average range 5-6-3). Most overwintering females produce one litter peryear, but a few can produce two litters. Sexual maturity occurs at 10-11 months of age, after overwintering.
Activity patterns. Lichtenstein’sJerboa is nocturnal. Aboveground activity usually starts 30 minutes after sunset and ends before sunrise. Hibernation in southern parts of the distribution lasts 3-5 months from the end of November to early March. In northern parts of the distribution, hibernation lasts 5-5-6 months from September to early April.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Lichtenstein’s Jerboas move slowly while foraging, using bipedal pacing with alternating support by left and right hindfeet. They use asynchronous ricochet jumps when running fast. Maximum length of jump is 196 cm, and maximum speed is 7-3 m/s. Escape behavior is characterized by fast runs of relatively short distances, that end by hiding under a shrub crown or in shelter burrow. Home ranges are 0-5-28 ha. Foraging occurs in small patches of 4-15 m? during the night, individuals visit 3-5 such patches in their home ranges. Burrows have one main entrance, 1-3 emergency exits, one main and 1-2 additional tunnels, one nest chamber (10-12 cm in diameter for males and up to 17 cm forfemales) at depths of 30-120 cm, and 2-3 (up to six) additional chambers; total lengths of tunnels are 200-600 cm. Main entrance is always closed with sand plug. Shelter burrows are simple, with one tunnel 60-200 cm long, passing from the ground’s surface to depths of 40-100 cm.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List.
Bibliography. Shenbrot et al. (2008), Sokolov et al. (1996), Zhang Yongzu et al. (1997).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Dipodidae, pp. 81-100 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on pages 97-98, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6591722