Mammals of the WorldAlashan Ground Squirrel
Spermophilus alaschanicus
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Sciuridae
- Genus
- Spermophilus
- IUCN status
- LC (as Spermophilus alashanicus)
- Distribution
- Mongolia|China
- Realm
- Palearctic
About this species
- Habitat
- Dry grassland and desert-steppe
- Range
- Mongolia and northern China
The Alashan ground squirrel is a compact, short-tailed member of the squirrel family. Its coat is sandy grey-brown, suited to the dry ground of the Alashan region, with paler underparts and a lightly grizzled back. The rounded ears are small and the limbs carry digging claws. It resembles other unstriped Spermophilus in Mongolia, so range and close examination are important; colour alone is not a secure identification character. (Wikipedia, Alashan ground squirrel account)
This species occurs in Mongolia and northern China in dry grassland, desert-steppe and adjoining upland country. It is terrestrial and shelters in burrows, emerging by day to forage. Like related ground squirrels it is associated with strongly seasonal environments, but the opened species page supplied too little species-level evidence to state an exact diet, litter size or hibernation schedule. It also gave no named Mongolian locality. Those details are omitted to avoid transferring biology from similar ground squirrels. (Wikipedia, Alashan ground squirrel account)
Description: Wildlife of Mongolia guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)