The Maghreb garden dormouse (''Eliomys munbyanus'') is a

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

in the family Gliridae. It is found in

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and

Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the r ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s vary from humid forests to semi-deserts. It is a common species and the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has rated it as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

Description

The Maghreb garden dormouse is a medium-sized species with moderately long, soft, sometimes woolly, fur. The upper parts are a yellowish or reddish-brown tinged with grey. The underparts are white tinged with grey; there is a clear demarcation line between the two colours. The top of the head matches the upper parts, but the colour becomes paler towards the snout. The large eyes are surrounded by a dark mask. The cheeks are whitish or cream and a streak of the same colour extends to the shoulders. The ears are medium-sized, oval and brown, and there is usually a reddish or pale patch of bare skin behind the ears. The tail is long, has short hair, and is rather variable in colour. The upper side is usually black and the underside pale grey or brownish-white. The base of the tail is similar to the body colour and the tip has longer hairs than the rest of the tail and is white.

Distribution and habitat

The Maghreb garden dormouse is native to Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. It is found from sea level to altitudes of in the High Atlas Mountains. It occurs in a range of habitats including humid forest, pine forests, mountain cedar forests, coastal dunes and semi-desert, and sometimes enters habitations. It seems to prefer rocky habitats.

Description

Distribution and habitat

References

Further reading