103.

Sand Gerbil

Gerbullus syrticus

French: Gerbille de Syrte / German: Sandrennmaus / Spanish: Gerbillo de arena

Taxonomy. Gerbillus syrticus Misonne, 1974,

12 \ km N. Nofilia, Libya. ıﬁı

A poorly known species, G. syrticus was tentatively placed in synonymy with G. henleyi by D. M. Lay in 1983, 1. Ya. Pavlinov and colleagues in 1990, and S. Aulagnier and colleagues in 2009 on morphological grounds, but G. G. Musser and M. D. Carleton in 2005 retained it as valid pending further revision and further geneticdata. D. C. D. Happold did not mention it in his

2013 work on African mammals. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known only from the type locality in NC Libya

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Descriptive notes. Head—body 51 mm,tail 53 mm, hindfoot 18 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The Sand Gerbil is very small, with short (103% of head—body length) bicolored tail, and has naked soles on hindfeet. In original description, skull drawing shows holotype to be a juvenile, with lower M, not erupted, but molars are clearly larger than those of the Pygmy Gerbil ( G. henleyi) and with different cusp pattern.

Habitat. Pre-desertic region with Calligonum (Polygonaceae) bush, sand dunes with Artemisia (Asteraceae) and Asphodelus (Asphodelaceae) .

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The Sand Gerbil is probably nocturnal and terrestrial, digging burrows.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The [UCN Red List. The Sand Gerbil, if found to be a valid species, may be seriously threatened owing to instability of region where it is found.

Bibliography. Aulagnier et al. (2009), Happold (2013a), Lay (1983), Misonne (1974), Musser & Carleton (2005), Pavlinov et al. (1990).