Eastern Mole Vole

About this species

Size

Head and body 9.5–13.0cm; tail 0.8–2.0cm

Weight

30–88g

Habitat

Deserts, semi-deserts, steppes and other grassy areas; prefers damp valleys and the shores of lakes and watercourses

Range

From Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan across Mongolia and the Russian republic of Tuva to northern China

The eastern mole vole has a head-and-body length of 95–130 millimetres, a tail of 8–20 millimetres and a weight of 30–88 grams. The soft, velvety fur varies between brown and grey tones, and some animals are nearly white on the belly. Dark brown spots between the eyes and the ear openings are characteristic. As in other species of the genus there is only a 4-millimetre ridge in place of an ear conch, and a small tuft of grey-white hair sits on the tail tip. The claws are rather small for a burrowing mammal, since the animal digs mainly with its large incisors. (German Wikipedia, general species account)

This vole of Central Asia occurs from Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan across Mongolia and the Russian republic of Tuva to northern China, in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Gansu and Shaanxi. It lives in deserts, semi-deserts, steppes and other grassy areas, where it prefers damp valleys and the shores of lakes and watercourses. (German Wikipedia, general species account)

Description: Wildlife of Mongolia guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)