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Indian Gerbil

Tatera indica

French: Gerbille des Indes / German: Indische Nacktsohlenrennmaus / Spanish: Gerbillo de India

Other common names: Antelope Rat

Taxonomy. Dipus indicus Hardwicke, 1807,

between Benares and Hardwar, United Province, India.

Until recently, all African Gerbilliscus were included in genus 7atera. I. Ya. Pavlinov in 1981, 1990 (with coworkers), and 2001, however, proposed that, on morphological grounds, Tatera be used only for the single modern Asian species 1. indica, with all other African gerbils placed in Gerbilliscus . G. G.Musser and M. D. Carleton followed this opinion in 2005. Other molecular analyses by P. Chevret and G. Dobigny in 2005 and P. Colangelo and colleagues in 2007 confirmed that taxonomic arrangement. Monotypic.

Distribution. Turkey (Sanliurfa Province in SE Anatolia), Syria (E of Euphrates River), Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, S Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 143-210 mm, tail 152-198 mm, ear 21-31 mm, hindfoot 34-59 mm; weight 150-270 g. No sexual dimorphism tested, but T. J. Roberts indicated that males are heavier than females. The Indian Gerbil, the largest gerbil in its area of distribution, has dorsal pelage buff brown to gray and white ventral pelage. Tail is black, equal to or slightly shorter (82-106%) than head-body, and has small pencil of dark hairsat tip. Soles of hindfeet are naked. Individuals in Turkey are larger than those in India. Females bear four pairs of mammae.

Habitat. The Indian Gerbil occurs in wide variety of habitats, from dry grasslands to fallow and cultivated fields, desert oases,forests, irrigated channels, and palm or sugarcane plantations. It sometimes lives very close to human habitations near villages. It can live at up to altitudes of 2000 m.

Food and Feeding. The Indian Gerbil is omnivorous and water-dependent. Its diet includes roots, seeds, bulbs, green parts of plants, insects (including cutworms and other caterpillars); it will also eat eggs and young birds. Seeds dominate diet during winter. Indian Gerbils store food in their burrows.

Breeding. Breeding seems to occur throughout year. After a gestation of 22-23 days, females give birth to 1-9 young. Young are weaned at 21-30 days and reach sexual maturity at 10-16 weeks.

Activity patterns. Indian Gerbils are nocturnal, but can be active early in morning and evening. They dig very deep burrows (at c.1-2 m beneath surface) in embankments or mounds surrounding bushes. Nest chamber, 20 cm in diameter,is lined with shredded dry vegetable material. Tunnel network is complex with cul-de-sacs and many entrances, the latter closed during daytime.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Indian Gerbil is considered gregarious and lives in small colonies occupying close burrow system, but only a single individual counted per burrow. Home ranges measured between 250 m* and 1912 m?, depending on region. This species is aggressive and territorial.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red Last.

Bibliography. Chevret & Dobigny (2005), Colangelo et al. (2007), Krystufek & Vohralik (2009), Pavlinov (1981, 2001), Prakash (1962), Roberts (1977).