''Spermophilus brevicauda'' (Brandt’s ground squirrel) 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 n ...
in the family
Sciuridae
Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...
. It is found in eastern
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
and the northern half of the
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
region of China.
A generic revision of the genus was undertaken in 2007 which helped resolve the uncertainty as to whether this species should be considered a subspecies of ''
Spermophilus erythrogenys''. A phylogeny based on molecular sequence data determined that ''S. brevicauda'' was indeed a separate species from ''S. erythrogenys'', and from the other similar species in the genus, ''S. pallidicauda'' and ''S. alashanicus''.
Distribution
Brandt's ground squirrel is found from the
Lake Zaysan
Lake Zaysan (, ''Zaısan kóli'', زايسان كؤلئ, ; , ''Zaisan nuur'', en: ''Noble lake''; , ''Ozero Zajsan''; , Xiao'erjing: جَىْصْا پْ; dng, Җэсонпә) is a freshwater lake, ca. 1,810 km² (700 mi²), in eastern Ka ...
region in eastern Kazakhstan, southwards and westwards along the
Tian Shan
The Tian Shan,, , otk, 𐰴𐰣 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃, , tr, Tanrı Dağı, mn, Тэнгэр уул, , ug, تەڭرىتاغ, , , kk, Тәңіртауы / Алатау, , , ky, Теңир-Тоо / Ала-Тоо, , , uz, Tyan-Shan / Tangritog‘ ...
mountain range to the vicinity of
Almaty, on both sides of the Kazakh-Chinese border. The closely related species, ''
Spermophilus alashanicus'' from the
Alashan Desert and ''
Spermophilus pallidicauda'', found in north east
Gansu and
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Its border includes most of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for a ...
, are
allopatric in distribution, separated as they are by geographic boundaries.
[A Guide to the Mammals of China]
/ref>
Description
Brandt's ground squirrel is smaller than most other ''Spermophilus'' species being 165 to 210 millimetres long with a short tail some 30 to 50 millimetres long and weighing up to 440 grams. It is an ochre brown colour with distinctive lighter coloured spots. The hind feet are russet as is the tail, though in some parts of the range the tail is yellowish. There are paler regions around the eyes with rust coloured patches above and below.[
]
Biology
This species is found in dry steppes and semi-desert brushlands. It lives either communally or singly in burrows where it hibernates in winter and aestivates in excessive summer heat. The entrance to the burrow is often found at the base of a bush. The diet is primarily vegetarian consisting of seasonal plant growth[Smith, A.T. and Johnston, C.H. 2008. Spermophilus brevicauda] including young shoots of certain shrubs, bulbs and tubers. Unlike some other related species, Brandt's ground squirrel seldom stands erect on its two hind legs and its alarm cry is a quiet squeak.[
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1765678
Brevicauda
Mammals described in 1843