141.

Shaw's Jird

Meriones shawii

French: Mérione de Shaw / German: Shaw-Rennratte / Spanish: Gerbillo de Shaw

Taxonomy. Gerbillus shawii Duvernoy, 1842,

Oran, Algeria .

The constitution of M. shawwas clarified in 1990 by I. Ya. Pavlinov and colleagues, who separated out M. grandis as a valid species on morphological and morphometric grounds. This was confirmed in 2016 in molecular analysis by A. Lalis and colleagues, who showed that M. shawis distinct from M.grandis . In 2013, E. Fichet-Calvet described three subspecies, among which grandis has now been elevated to species rank and, pending further revision of whole range of M. shawii, subspecies “trouessartit’is considered not validated. Monotypic.

Distribution. Coastal regions of N Africa from E Morocco E to Egypt W of Nile River.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 125-180 mm,tail 117-178 mm, ear 14-22 mm, hindfoot 31-37 mm; weight 70-180 g. This medium-sized jird has a tawny brown dorsal pelage and a white ventral one. Tail is of about same length as head-body length (95%) and ends with small brush of black hairs. Hindfoot soles are partially hairy, and claws are white. Tympanic bullae are inflated and represent 32-34% of total length of skull. Females have eight mammae. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 44, FN = 78.

Habitat. Shaw’s Jird is very common in semiarid environments of North Africa, where it prefers cerealfields with soft soils as well as oases (palm groves and gardens). It can live at up to 2000 m in Atlas Mountains and high plateau, where it was recorded inside rock shelters among pastureland. In Tunisia, it isfound amongjujube bushes ( Ziziphus Jujuba, Rhamnaceae) and at edges of cultivated fields bordered by prickly pear cacti ( Opuntia, Cactaceae).

Food and Feeding. Diet of Shaw’s Jird was monitored during one year in Algeria and found to be composed mainly of vegetable matter. In spring and summer cereal seeds make up more than 50% of diet, while at other periods Leguminosae, Compositae, Malvaceae, and very diverse stems, flowers, and leaves are consumed. Arthropods are occasionally eaten in summer. Shaw’s Jirds are known to store food in burrows.

Breeding. Breeding by Shaw’s Jirds is apparently seasonal, with peak in reproduction after rainy season. Gestation lasts 21 days. Litter consists of 3-8 offspring (average 5).

Activity patterns. Shaw’s Jird is nocturnal but may also be active in the morning. It is terrestrial and digs burrows with many entrances in softer soils, where it stores cereals and other vegetable food.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Shaw’s Jird is a colonial species, but males seem to have larger territories than females. The speices communicates by using foot-drumming and vocalizations.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List (as M. shawi). Shaw’s Jird may live at high density in cereals fields, and in Algeria it isresponsible forwheat loss of 400 kg/ha and for degradation of large surface areas (200,000 400,000 ha of fields destroyed) per year.

Bibliography. Aulagnier et al. (2009), Adamou-Djerbaoui, Denys et al. (2013), Adamou-Djerbaoui, Djelaila, Adamou etal. (2010), Adamou-Djerbaoui, Djelaila & Labdelli (2011), Bridelance (1989), Fichet-Calvet (2013a), Lalis et al. (2016), Pavlinov et al. (1990), Zaime & Gautier (1988), Zaime et al. (1992).