Nannospalax
Nannospalax is a genus of rodent in the family Spalacidae, found in eastern Europe and western Asia. It is one of two genera in the blind mole-rats (subfamily Spalacinae), alongside "Spalax". Members of this genus are also known as small-bodied mole-rats. As with members of the genus "Spalax", they are completely blind, with their eyes being entirely covered by skin. Taxonomy and evolution. Until 2013, members of this genus were grouped in "Spalax", but phylogenetic analysis indicates that both diverged during the late Miocene, about 7.6 million years ago, when a marine barrier formed between Anatolia  and the Balkans. It also supports two different subgenera within this genus; "Nannospalax sensu stricto" (containing a single species) and "Mesospalax", which diverged from each other during the late Miocene or early Pliocene, after the uplift of the Anatolian Plateau"." Members of this genus are notable for their extreme chromosomal diversity, some of which may represent as-of-yet unrecognized species-level taxa. Genetic analysis indicates distinct periods of diversification among spalacids that correspond with climactic changes caused by Milankovitch cycles. Species. There are three species in this genus in two subgenera: Some authorities, including ITIS and Mammal Species of  the World, have split out four species endemic to Israel and surrounding regions from "N. ehrenbergi" based on chromosomal divergence: the Mount Carmel blind mole-rat ("N. carmeli"), the Golan Heights blind mole-rat ("N. golani"), the Upper Galilee Mountains blind mole-rat ("N. galili"), and the Judean Mountains blind mole-rat ("N. judaei"). However, the American Society of Mammalogists and the IUCN Red List presently group these within "N. ehrenbergi" due to taxonomic uncertainty.