Spalax arenarius, Reshetnik, 1939
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6609100 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6608887 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03AE87DD-FF95-BD1A-FA35-F40CFBA5F901 |
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treatment provided by |
Felipe |
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scientific name |
Spalax arenarius |
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Sandy Blind Mole-rat
French: Spalax des sables / German: Sandblindmaus / Spanish: Rata topo ciega de los arenales
Other common names: Sandy Mole-rat
Taxonomy. Spalax arenarius Reshetnik, 1939 View in CoL ,
NW shore of Black Sea, Golaya Pristan , Nikolaev Region, Ukraine.
Spalax arenarius is the sister species to S. zemni , and it has been treated as a subspecies or synonym of S. zemni , S. microphthalmus , and S. giganteus in the past. Its species status is supported by morphological features and is broadly accepted in recent texts. Monotypic.
Distribution. E bank of the Dniepr River near its opening into the Black Sea (S Ukraine). View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 190-275 mm, no visible external tail; weight 380-660 g. Male Sandy Blind Mole-rats are larger than females. They are large pale straw-yellow-gray. Front of head is lighter grayish white, and venter is pale mouse gray. Fringe of pale yellow-gray hair extends from nose to ears. Diploid number is 2n = 62.
Habitat. Sparsely vegetated absinth (Ar temisia, Asteraceae )grass and absinthspurge ( Euphorbiaceae ) steppes. The Sandy Blind Mole-rat is found in light, moderately wet, sandy soils with a low water table and is never found in moving sands, dry feather-grass steppe, or alkali soils.
Food and Feeding. Sandy Blind Mole-rats feed on a variety of plants including field eryngo ( Eryngium campestre, Apiaceae ), wormwood ( Artemisia campestris, Asteraceae ), and goatsbeard (7 Tragopogon ucrainicus, Asteraceae ). Accumulated winter stores weigh 10-15 kg.
Breeding. Breeding of the Sandy Blind Mole-rat occurs once a year in March. Young are born in April-May, and lactation lasts c.1 month.
Activity patterns. No information.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Sandy Blind Mole-rats are solitary and aggressive toward conspecifics. Feeding tunnels can be 200 m long and occur at depths of 40-50 cm. Individual home ranges are more than 80 m?. Vertical shafts connect to chambers atjust over 1 m deep. Mounds are 35-93 cm in diameter and 20-45 cm in height. The Sandy Blind Mole-rat occurs at densities of 5 ind/ha in optimal habitat and 0-9-1-2 ind/ha elsewhere. Predators include foxes, mustelids, domestic dogs, and raptors.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List. The Sandy Blind Mole-rat is protected in the Black Sea Biosphere Reserve, but it faces conservation threats and is declining outside ofthis area. Its extent of occurrence is ¢.2000 km? and its area of occupancy is ¢.55 km?®. It is threatened by afforestation activities that are intended to stabilize the landscape and to support commercial forestry. Total population is estimated at 15,000-20,000 individuals, which are known from fewer than five localities.
Bibliography. Gromov & Erbajeva (1995), Hadid et al. (2012), Musser & Carleton (2005), Németh et al. (2013), Ognev (1947), Puzachenko (2016h), Topachevskii (1969), Tsytsulina & Zagorodnyuk (2008).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
