Maximowicz's vole (''Microtus maximowiczii'') is a 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 Cricetidae. It is found in northeastern

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

, and eastern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Description

Maximowicz's vole is one of the largest voles in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

'' Microtus''. Adults grow to a head-and-body length of with a tail length of . The fur on the back is dark brownish-black with ochre specks, and the flanks are paler brown, blending gradually into the greyish-white underparts. The upper sides of the hands and feet are whitish-brown. The tail is either uniform dark brown or bicoloured, with the upper side dark brown and the underside white. Its scientific and common names commemorate the prominent Russian botanist Karl Maximovich, who was curator of the herbarium at the Saint Petersburg Botanical Garden at the time the vole was described by Leopold von Schrenck.Reisen und Forsch., in Säugeth. Amurlande St. Petersburg., 1: 140.

Distribution and habitat

Maximowicz's vole is found in eastern Asia. Its range extends from

Lake Baikal Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...

eastward to the mountains of northeastern Mongolia, the

Amur River The Amur (russian: река́ Аму́р, ), or Heilong Jiang (, "Black Dragon River", ), is the world's List of longest rivers, tenth longest river, forming the border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China, Northeastern China (Inne ...

basin and northeastern China. Its typical habitats are forest and steppe and it is found in areas of dense vegetation in valleys and foothills.

Behaviour

Maximowicz's vole is most active early in the morning and shortly before nightfall when it emerges from its burrow to feed on grasses and other plant material. The entrance to the burrow has a spoil heap which may be up to in diameter and in height. The tunnel itself is quite short and terminates in a nest chamber some in diameter and high. Other side chambers are used for storing roots and bulbs for winter food. Not much is known of the breeding habits of Maximowicz's vole but females have been reported as carrying seven and nine embryos.

Status

Maximowicz's vole has a very wide range. It is common in much of that range and faces no particular identified threats, so 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 assessed its conservation status 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 ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1761791 Microtus Mammals described in 1859 Taxa named by Leopold von Schrenck Taxonomy articles created by Polbot