image:Calo03.jpg, 200px, right
image:Calo13.jpg, 200px, Mouse-like hamster using its tail for balance while standing on a branch (a feat difficult for hamsters)
Mouse-like hamsters are a group of small rodents found in Syria, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. They are found in rocky outcrops and semi-mountainous areas in desert regions.
The mouse-like hamsters are not true hamsters, but represent an early split from the rest of the Muroidea, mouse-like rodents. They were once thought to be hamsters based on the shape of their molars, but they lack the cheek pouches, flank glands and short tails of the true hamsters. The closest relatives of the mouse-like hamsters may be the extinct Cricetodontidae. Because of their seemingly early break from the rest of the mouse-like rodents, mouse-like hamsters have been placed in a family of their own, Calomyscidae, and have been referred to as living fossils.
All members of the genus were once considered part of the same species, ''Calomyscus bailwardi'', but the two are now referred to as separate species due to major differences in chromosome number, skull measurements, and other features.
[Steppan, S. J., R. A. Adkins, and J. Anderson. 2004. Phylogeny and divergence date estimates of rapid radiations in Muroidea, muroid rodents based on multiple nuclear genes. Systematic Biology, 53:533-553.]
In Europe, a species of ''Calomyscus'' is available as a pet. They are labelled ''Calomyscus bailwardi mystax'' or ''Calomyscus bailwardi''. They are generally only available from dedicated breeders, not pet shops.
Species
Family Calomyscidae
*Genus ''Calomyscus''
**Zagros Mountains mouse-like hamster, ''C. bailwardi''
**Baluchi mouse-like hamster, ''C. baluchi''
**Calomyscus elburzensis, Goodwin's mouse-like hamster, ''C. elburzensis''
***Zykov's mouse-like hamster, ''C. e. zykovi''
**Noble mouse-like hamster, ''C. grandis''
**Hotson's mouse-like hamster, ''C. hotsoni''
**Great Balkhan mouse-like hamster, ''C. mystax''
**Tsolov's mouse-like hamster, ''C. tsolovi''
**Urar mouse-like hamster, ''C. urartensis''
References
*Jansa, S. A. and M. Weksler. 2004. Phylogeny of Muroidea, muroid rodents: relationships within and among major lineages as determined by IRBP gene sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 31:256-276.
*Michaux, J., A. Reyes, and F. Catzeflis. 2001. Evolutionary history of the most speciose mammals: molecular phylogeny of Muroidea, muroid rodents. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 17:280-293.
*Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 in'' Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference''. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
External links
Animal Diversity Web: Detailed description
{{Taxonbar, from=Q284030
Muroid rodents
Mouse-like hamsters, *
Mammals of Pakistan
Mammals of Western Asia
Mammals of Central Asia
Extant Miocene first appearances
Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas