Nordmann's birch mouse

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Nordmann's birch mouse
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Sminthidae
Genus: Sicista
Species:
S. loriger
Binomial name
Sicista loriger
(Nathusius, 1840)
Synonyms

Sicista nordmanni (Keyserling & Blasius, 1840)
Sicista subtilis loriger

Contents

Nordmann's birch mouse (Sicista loriger) is a species of birch mouse in the family Sminthidae. [2] It is named after Finnish biologist Alexander von Nordmann. It is native to eastern and southeastern Europe.

Taxonomy

It was long thought to be a subspecies of the southern birch mouse (S. subtilis), but a 2016 study found sufficient genetic and anatomical divergence for it to be considered its own species. [3] [4]

Distribution

It is restricted to the western portion of the Pontic–Caspian steppe, where it is known only from a few isolated populations in southern Ukraine, west Belgorod in Russia, and eastern Romania. In addition, it may potentially be found in Bulgaria and Moldova. [1]

Status

This species has a fragmented distribution due to its reliance on the largely developed steppe habitat. Populations in these fragmented regions also face ongoing threats from development and agriculture. Due to this, this species is classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List. [1]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birch mouse</span> Genus of rodents

Birch mice are small jumping rodents that resemble mice with long, tufted tails and very long hind legs, allowing for remarkable leaps. They are the only extant members of the family Sminthidae. They are native to Eurasian forests and steppes. All variants possess a long tail of 65 to 110 mm of length and weigh about 6 to 14 g. Head and body length of 50 to 90 mm and hind foot length of 14 to 18 mm. The animal's skin color is light brown or dark-brown to brownish yellow on the upper side and paler on the underside, but generally brownish. Birch mice have a vast geographic distribution in that they inhabit a wide variety of habitats, from semiarid areas to subalpine meadows. Although they have a diverse region of areas, their molecular and anatomical markers have claimed that Birch mice originated from Central Asia.Birch mice have a systematic of the genus of Sicista, they look at the male reproductive organs and cytogenic data.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern birch mouse</span> Species of rodent

The southern birch mouse is a species of birch mouse in the family Sminthidae. It is native to southern Russia, Kazakhstan, and potentially northern Mongolia and China.

The Armenian birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae.

The Caucasian birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae, that is endemic to Russia. Reports that it occurs in Turkey probably refer to Armenian birch mouse, from which it can only be reliably distinguished on the basis of karyotype. The Caucasian birch mouse inhabits the Western Montane Caucasus area, land situated between the Black sea and the Caspian sea.

The Kazbeg birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is found in Georgia and Russia and has a natural habitat of temperate forests.

The Kluchor birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is endemic to Russia. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.

The Altai birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is native to Russia and Kazakhstan. A baby Altai birch mouse is called a 'pinkie, kitten or pup'. The females are called 'doe' and males 'buck'. A Altai birch mouse group is called a 'nest, colony, harvest, horde or mischief'.

The gray birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is endemic to Kazakhstan, but possibly ranges into China. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.

The Severtzov's birch mouse, or dark birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is endemic to East-European steppes.

The Tien Shan birch mouse is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is found in China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Sicista concolor, the Chinese birch mouse, is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is native to China, India and Pakistan.

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The Hungarian birch mouse is a species of birch mouse in the family Sminthidae. It was once found throughout Central Europe and Romania, but is now only known from two isolated populations in Hungary and Transylvania in Romania, each of which belong to their own subspecies.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Kennerley, R.; Zagorodnyuk, I. & Cserkész, T. (2017). "Sicista loriger". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T110500058A175618666. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T110500058A175618666.en .
  2. "Sicista loriger (Nathusius, 1840)". www.mammaldiversity.org. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  3. Cserkész, Tamás; Rusin, Mikhail; Sramkó, Gábor (2016). "An integrative systematic revision of the European southern birch mice (Rodentia: Sminthidae, Sicista subtilis group)". Mammal Review. 46 (2): 114–130. doi:10.1111/mam.12058. ISSN   1365-2907.
  4. Lebedev, Vladimir; Poplavskaya, Natalia; Bannikova, Anna; Rusin, Mikhail; Surov, Alexey; Kovalskaya, Yulia (2020-03-01). "Genetic variation in the Sicista subtilis (Pallas, 1773) species group (Rodentia, Sminthidae), as compared to karyotype differentiation". Mammalia. 84 (2): 185–194. doi:10.1515/mammalia-2018-0216. ISSN   1864-1547. S2CID   202024134.