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Lemming
A lemming is a small rodent, usually found in or near the Arctic in tundra biomes. Lemmings form the subfamily Arvicolinae (also known as Microtinae) together with voles and muskrats, which form part of the superfamily Muroidea, which also includes rats, mice, hamsters, and gerbils. In popular culture, a longstanding myth holds that they exhibit herd mentality and jump off cliffs, committing mass suicide. Description and habitat Lemmings measure around in length and weigh around . Lemmings are quite rounded in shape, with brown and black, long, soft fur. They have a very short tail, a stubby, hairy snout, short legs, and small ears. They have a flattened claw on the first digit of their front feet, which helps them to dig in the snow. They are herbivorous, feeding mostly on mosses and grasses. They also forage through the snow surface to find berries, leaves, shoots, roots, bulbs, and lichens. Lemmings choose their preferred dietary vegetation disproportionately to its occurrenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norway Lemming
The Norway lemming, also known as the Norwegian lemming (''Lemmus lemmus'') is a common species of lemming found in northern Fennoscandia, where it is the only vertebrate species endemic to the region. The Norway lemming dwells in tundra and fells, and prefers to live near water. Adults feed primarily on sedges, grasses and moss. They are active at both day and night, alternating naps with periods of activity. Distribution It has a wide distribution from western Norway east to the Kola Peninsula. A 2021 study suggests that the lemmings of Novaya Zemlya may also belong to this species; this would extend its range east to Novaya Zemlya island, but these results have not been fully accepted. Description The mainland Norway lemming has a bold pattern of black and yellow-brown, which is variable between individuals. In contrast, the Novaya Zemlya lemming has a cryptic gray coloration (hence why it was previously thought to be a population of the Siberian brown lemming). The spec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arvicolinae
The Arvicolinae are a subfamily of rodents that includes the voles, lemmings, and muskrats. They are most closely related to the other subfamilies in the Cricetidae (comprising the hamsters and New World rats and mice). Some authorities place the subfamily Arvicolinae in the family Muridae along with all other members of the superfamily Muroidea. Some refer to the subfamily as the Microtinae (yielding the adjective "microtine") or rank the taxon as a full family, the Arvicolidae. The Arvicolinae are the most populous group of Rodentia in the Northern Hemisphere. They often are found in fossil occlusions of bones cached by past predators such as owls and other birds of prey. Fossils of this group are often used for biostratigraphic dating of paleontological and archeological sites in North America and Europe. Description The most convenient distinguishing feature of the Arvicolinae is the nature of their molar teeth, which have prismatic cusps in the shape of alternati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lemmini
Lemmini is a tribe of lemmings in the subfamily Arvicolinae. Species in this tribe are: Tribe Lemmini * Genus ''Lemmus'' - true lemmings ** Amur lemming (''L. amurensis'') ** Norway lemming (''L. lemmus'') ** Beringian lemming (''L. nigripes'') ** East Siberian lemming (''L. paulus'') ** West Siberian lemming (''L. sibiricus'') ** North American brown lemming (''L. trimucronatus'') * Genus ''Myopus'' - wood lemming ** Wood lemming (''M. schisticolor'') * Genus '' Synaptomys'' - bog lemmings ** Northern bog lemming (''S. borealis'') ** Southern bog lemming (''S. cooperi'') The fossil taxa '' Mictomys'', '' Tobienia'' (both thought to be allied with ''Synaptomys''), and '' Plioctomys'' (thought to be allied with ''Lemmus'' and ''Myopus'') are also thought to belong to this group. A 2021 phylogenetic study using mtDNA recovered Lemmini as being the most basal clade of the Arvicolinae, diverging during the late Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siberian Brown Lemming
The West Siberian lemming or Western Siberian brown lemming (''Lemmus sibiricus'') is a true lemming species found in the Russian Federation. Like other lemmings, it belongs to the Cricetidae family of rodents. It is endemic to Russia, where it has a wide range throughout Siberia, from the region just south of the White Sea east all the way to the Verkhoyansk Range, which serves as a barrier between it and the East Siberian lemming (''L. paulus''), which was formerly considered conspecific with it. An insular population inhabits Novaya Zemlya; a 2021 study which performed genetic analysis on the mtDNA of the Novaya Zemlya population found them to group with the Norway lemming (''L. lemmus'') despite their similar appearance to mainland ''L. sibiricus'', and classified them as the subspecies ''L. l. chernovi'', or Novaya Zemlya lemming. However, the American Society of Mammalogists rejected these results pending further evidence, stating that these more likely represented ''L. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lagurini
Lagurini is a tribe of lemmings in the subfamily Arvicolinae. It contains three species in two genera. Species in this tribe are known as steppe lemmings. It contains the following species: * Genus '' Eolagurus'' ** Yellow steppe lemming, ''E. luteus'' ** Przewalski's steppe lemming, ''E. przewalskii'' * Genus '' Lagurus'' ** Steppe lemming, ''L. lagurus'' Phylogenetic evidence based on mtDNA supports the water voles of the genus '' Arvicola'' not in fact belonging to the tribe Arvicolini, but rather forming a sister group to the Lagurini. Based on the study, the Lagurini and ''Arvicola'' together form a sister group to a clade comprising ''Hyperacrius'' and the rest of the Arvicolini Arvicolini is a tribe of voles in the subfamily Arvicolinae. A 2021 study found that '' Arvicola'' may not belong in this group, instead being sister to the tribe Lagurini. List of species Tribe Arvicolini *Genus '' Arvicola'' - water voles ** .... References {{Taxonbar, from=Q17781830 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Population Cycle
A population cycle in zoology is a phenomenon where populations rise and fall over a predictable period of time. There are some species where population numbers have reasonably predictable patterns of change although the full reasons for population cycles is one of the major unsolved ecological problems. There are a number of factors which influence population change such as availability of food, predators, diseases and climate. Occurrence in mammal populations Olaus Magnus, the Archbishop of Uppsala in central Sweden, identified that species of northern rodents had periodic peaks in population and published two reports on the subject in the middle of the 16th century. In North America, the phenomenon was identified in populations of the snowshoe hare. In 1865, trappers with the Hudson's Bay Company were catching plenty of animals. By 1870, they were catching very few. It was finally identified that the cycle of high and low catches ran over approximately a ten-year period. The mos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muskrat
The muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over a wide range of climates and habitats. It has important effects on the ecology of wetlands, and is a resource of food and fur for humans. Adult muskrats weigh , with a body length of . They are covered with short, thick fur of medium to dark brown color. Their long tails, covered with scales rather than hair, are their main means of propulsion. Muskrats spend most of their time in the water and can swim under water for 12 to 17 minutes. They live in families, consisting of a male and female pair and their young. To protect themselves from the cold and from predators, they build nests that are often burrowed into the bank with an underwater entrance. Muskrats feed mostly on cattail and other aquatic vegetation but also eat small animals. ''Ondatra zibethicus'' is the only s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vole
Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of low-crowned with rounded cusps). They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America. Vole species form the subfamily Arvicolinae with the lemmings and the muskrats. There are approximately 155 different vole species. Description Voles are small rodents that grow to , depending on the species. Females can have five to ten litters per year, though with an average lifespan of three months and requiring one month to adulthood, two litters is the norm. Gestation lasts for three weeks and the young voles reach sexual maturity in a month. As a result of this biological exponential growth, vole populations can grow very large within a short time. A mating pair can produce a hundred more voles in a year. Voles outwardly resemble s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dicrostonychini
Dicrostonychini is a tribe of lemmings in the subfamily Arvicolinae. It contains only one extant genus, as well as one extinct genus. A 2021 study found Dicrostonychini to also include the genera previously placed in the tribe Phenacomyini, and found this combined Dicrostonychini to be the sister group to the muskrats (tribe Ondatrini Ondatrini is a tribe of semiaquatic rodents in the family Arvicolinae. They are known as muskrats. They are related to voles and lemmings. Classification It contains two extant species, each in their own genus, both of which are native to North ...). References Voles and lemmings Taxa named by Miklós Kretzoi Mammal tribes {{arvicolinae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ondatrini
Ondatrini is a tribe of semiaquatic rodents in the family Arvicolinae. They are known as muskrats. They are related to voles and lemmings. Classification It contains two extant species, each in their own genus, both of which are native to North America: * Genus ''Neofiber'' ** Round-tailed muskrat, ''N. alleni'' * Genus ''Ondatra'' ** Muskrat, ''O. zibethicus'' Of these, the muskrat (''O. zibethicus'') is found throughout North America aside from the warmer or drier regions, and has been introduced to Eurasia. The round-tailed muskrat (''N. alleni'') is only found in Florida and adjacent Georgia, just outside of the range of ''O. zibethicus''. Some authorities place both genera in different tribes (Ondatrini for ''Ondatra'', Neofibrini for ''Neofiber''), but the American Society of Mammalogists places both in Ondatrini, and some molecular evidence supports a close relation between both genera. Some phylogenetic evidence indicates that Balkan snow vole (''Dinaromys bogdanovi'') ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muroidea
The Muroidea are a large superfamily of rodents, including mice, rats, voles, hamsters, lemmings, gerbils, and many other relatives. Although the Muroidea originated in Eurasia, they occupy a vast variety of habitats on every continent except Antarctica. Some authorities have placed all members of this group into a single family, Muridae, due to difficulties in determining how the subfamilies are related to one another. Many of the families within the Muroidea superfamily have more variations between the families than between the different clades. A possible explanation for the variations in rodents is because of the location of these rodents; these changes could have been due to radiation or the overall environment they migrated to or originated in. The following taxonomy is based on recent well-supported molecular phylogenies. The muroids are classified in six families, 19 subfamilies, around 280 genera, and at least 1,750 species. Taxonomy *Family Platacanthomyidae (spiny ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pliomyini
The Balkan snow vole (''Dinaromys bogdanovi''), also known as Martino's snow vole, is the only member of the genus ''Dinaromys''. Eight subspecies of this vole have been recognized from southern parts of Europe. The genus name means "Dinaric mouse", referring to the Dinaric Alps. The Balkan snow vole is a living fossil, the only living species in the tribe Pliomyini, and might arguably better be placed in ''Pliomys'', a genus established for its fossil relatives even before the Balkan snow vole was scientifically described. A 2021 study found ''Dinaromys'' (and by extension, the rest of Pliomyini) to be the sister group to the tribe Ellobiusini, from which it diverged during the late Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...; however, this still remains uncertain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
