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King Jird

Meriones rex

French: Mérione royale / German: Konigsrennratte / Spanish: Gerbillo real

Taxonomy. Meriones rex Yerbury & Thomas, 1895,

“Lahej,” near Aden, Yemen.

An Arabian endemic, M. rex was thought to belong to subgenus Parameriones by C. F. Nadler and D. M. Lay in 1967 and D.L. Harrison and P.J. J. Bates in 1991, an opinion not followed by I. Ya. Pavlinov and colleagues in 1990 and G. G. Musser and M. D. Carleton in 2005. M. Ito and coworkers in 2010 presented a molecular study of different Meriones and showed that M. rex is sister taxon of M. crassus and is a valid species. Monotypic.

Distribution. Highlands of SW Arabia (Saudi Arabia and Yemen).

Descriptive notes. Head—body 133-172 mm, tail 105-196 mm, ear 15-23-5 mm, hindfoot 31-42 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The KingJird is a large jird characterized by its naked hindfoot soles and hairy tail, latter shorter than body length and with terminal tuft of black hairs less developed than that of the Persian Jird ( M. persicus). Dark clay-brown dorsal pelage is rough and coarse, with diffuse black hairs, and venter is dull buffy white. Prominent white post-auricular spots are visible. Robust skull has medium-sized tympanic bullae not fully inflated and representing 34% oftotal skull length. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 38, FN = 74.

Habitat. The King Jird occupies all types of habitat found in south-western Arabia, from bushes at border of desert or cultivated lands up to 2200 m above sea level to “wadis” (ephemeral riverbeds) with large acacias ( Acacia, Fabaceae).

Food and Feeding. Diet of the King Jird is poorly known, but it feeds on Salvadora persica (Salvadoraceae) bushes.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. King Jirds are nocturnal and terrestrial.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. King Jirds live in large burrows among bushes; burrows are shared with other rodents and with lizards.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List because the species is rather common in its area of distribution.

Bibliography. Alagaili et al. (2013), Al-Jumaily (1998), Al-Saleh & Khan (1987), Harrison & Bates (1991), Ito et al. (2010), Musser & Carleton (2005), Nadler & Lay (1967), Pavlinov etal. (1990).