List of sminthids

Northern birch mouse (Sicista betulina)

Sminthidae is a family of mammals in the order Rodentia and part of the Myomorpha suborder. Members of this family are called sminthids or birch mice. They are found in Asia and Europe, primarily in forests, shrublands, and grasslands, though some species can be found in wetlands. They are all of a similar size, ranging from 4–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus a 6–12 cm (2–5 in) tail. Sminthids are omnivores and primarily eat seeds, berries, and insects. ^[1] No sminthids have population estimates, but the Hungarian birch mouse and Kazbeg birch mouse are categorized as endangered, while the Armenian birch mouse, Nordmann's birch mouse, and Severtzov's birch mouse are categorized as critically endangered.

The sixteen extant species of Sminthidae are all in a single genus. Several extinct prehistoric sminthid species have been discovered, though due to ongoing research and discoveries, the exact number and categorization is not fixed. ^[2]

Conventions

IUCN Red List categories

Conservation status
EX	Extinct (0 species)
EW	Extinct in the wild (0 species)
CR	Critically endangered (3 species)
EN	Endangered (2 species)
VU	Vulnerable (0 species)
NT	Near threatened (2 species)
LC	Least concern (7 species)
Other categories
DD	Data deficient (2 species)
NE	Not evaluated (0 species)

The author citation for the species or genus is given after the scientific name; parentheses around the author citation indicate that this was not the original taxonomic placement. Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the sminthid's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted.

Classification

Sminthidae is a family consisting of sixteen extant species in a single genus, Sicista . This does not include hybrid species or extinct prehistoric species.

Sminthids

The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by the reference work Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis, as supported by both the IUCN and the American Society of Mammalogists. ^[3]

Genus Sicista – Gray, 1827 – sixteen species

Common name	Scientific name and subspecies	Range	Size and ecology	IUCN status and estimated population
Altai birch mouse	S. napaea Hollister, 1912	Eastern Kazakhstan and southern Russia	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Shrubland and grassland [5]	LC  Unknown [5]
Armenian birch mouse	S. armenica Baskevich, 1988	Armenia	Size: About 7 cm (3 in) long, plus 9–11 cm (4 in) tail [6] Habitat: Grassland [7]	CR  Unknown [7]
Caucasian birch mouse	S. caucasica Vinogradov, 1925	Southwestern Russia and northern Georgia	Size: 4–7 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [6] Habitat: Grassland [8]	NT  Unknown [8]
Chinese birch mouse	S. concolor (Büchner, 1892)	Central and western China	Size: 5–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [6] Habitat: Forest, shrubland, and grassland [9]	LC  Unknown [9]
Gray birch mouse	S. pseudonapaea Strautman, 1949	Eastern Kazakhstan and northwestern China	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Forest, shrubland, and grassland [10]	DD  Unknown [10]
Hungarian birch mouse	S. trizona (Frivaldszky, 1865)	Hungary and Romania	Size: 5–7 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 6–10 cm (2–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Grassland [11]	EN  Unknown [11]
Kazbeg birch mouse	S. kazbegica Sokolov, Baskevich, & Kovalskaya, 1986	Georgia and southwestern Russia	Size: 6–7 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 9–11 cm (4 in) tail [6] Habitat: Grassland [12]	EN  Unknown [12]
Kluchor birch mouse	S. kluchorica Sokolov, Kovalskaya, & Baskevich, 1980	Georgia and southwestern Russia	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [6] Habitat: Grassland [13]	LC  Unknown [13]
Long-tailed birch mouse	S. caudata Thomas, 1907	Eastern Russia and eastern China	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 9–12 cm (4–5 in) tail [6] Habitat: Forest and grassland [14]	DD  Unknown [14]
Nordmann's birch mouse	S. loriger (Nathusius, 1840)	Eastern Europe and southwestern Russia	Size: 5–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 6–9 cm (2–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Grassland [15]	CR  Unknown [15]
Northern birch mouse	S. betulina (Pallas, 1779)	Central, eastern, and northern Europe and western Asia	Size: 5–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–10 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Forest, grassland, and inland wetlands [16]	LC  Unknown [16]
Severtzov's birch mouse	S. severtzovi Ogniov, 1935	Southwestern Russia	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 7–9 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Grassland [17]	CR  Unknown [17]
Southern birch mouse	S. subtilis (Pallas, 1773)	Central Asia	Size: 5–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 7–9 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Shrubland and grassland [18]	LC  Unknown [18]
Strand's birch mouse	S. strandi (Formozov, 1931)	Ukraine and southwestern Russia	Size: 6–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 8–11 cm (3–4 in) tail [4] Habitat: Forest and grassland [19]	LC  Unknown [19]
Tien Shan birch mouse	S. tianshanica (Zalensky, 1903)	Central Asia	Size: 5–8 cm (2–3 in) long, plus 10–12 cm (4–5 in) tail [6] Habitat: Forest and grassland [20]	LC  Unknown [20]
Tsimlyansk birch mouse	S. cimlanica Kovalskaya, Tikhonov, Tikhonova, Surov, & Bogomolov, 2000	Ukraine and southwestern Russia	Size: Unknown [4] Habitat: Grassland [21]	NT  Unknown [21]

References

1. Nowak, p. 1330
2. "Fossilworks: Dipodidae". Paleobiology Database . University of Wisconsin–Madison. Archived from the original on March 21, 2025. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
3. Wilson; Reeder, pp. 886-890
4. Chernasky; Motis; Burgin, p. 205
5. Cassola, F. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Sicista napaea". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20190A115157265. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20190A22204366.en .
6. Chernasky; Motis; Burgin, p. 204
7. Rusin, M. (2020). "Sicista armenica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T20185A22204773. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T20185A22204773.en .
8. Shenbrot, G. (2020). "Sicista caucasica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T20186A22204847. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T20186A22204847.en .
9. Molur, S. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Sicista concolor". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20188A115157138. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20188A22204686.en .
10. Clayton, E. (2016). "Sicista pseudonapaea". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20191A22203925. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T20191A22203925.en .
11. Cserkész, T. (2024). "Sicista trizona". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2024: e.T92332716A221786778. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T92332716A221786778.en .
12. Shenbrot, G. (2016). "Sicista kazbegica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20189A22204183. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T20189A22204183.en .
13. Kennerley, R. (2017). "Sicista kluchorica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T20196A22204093. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T20196A22204093.en .
14. Clayton, E. (2016). "Sicista caudata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20187A22204603. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T20187A22204603.en .
15. Rusin, M. (2024). "Sicista loriger". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2024: e.T110500058A221790176. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T110500058A221790176.en .
16. Meinig, H.; Zagorodnyuk, I.; Henttonen, H.; Zima, J.; Coroiu, I. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Sicista betulina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20184A115156920. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20184A22203739.en .
17. Rusin, M. (2024). "Sicista severtzovi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2024: e.T221733873A221734933. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T221733873A221734933.en .
18. Cserkész, T.; Kennerley, R. (2018) [errata version of 2017 assessment]. "Sicista subtilis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T91934441A123795199. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T91934441A22204448.en .
19. Tsytsulina, K.; Formozov, N.; Zagorodnyuk, I.; Sheftel, B. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Sicista strandi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20193A115157429. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20193A22204276.en .
20. Cassola, F. (2016). "Sicista tianshanica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T20195A22204006. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T20195A22204006.en .
21. Rusin, M. (2024). "Sicista cimlanica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2024: e.T221732279A221732462. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T221732279A221732462.en .

Sources

• Chernasky, Amy; Motis, Anna; Burgin, Connor, eds. (2023). All the Mammals of the World . Lynx Nature Books. ISBN   978-84-16728-66-4.
• Nowak, Ronald M. (1999). Walker's Mammals of the World. Vol. 2 (6th ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN   978-0-8018-5789-8.
• Holder, Mary Ellen; Musser, Guy G. (2005). Wilson, Don E.; Reeder, DeeAnn M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World . Vol. 2 (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN   978-0-8018-8221-0.