All About Hamsters

 Hamster, (subfamily Cricetinae), any of the 18 rodent species found in Euraasia that have internal cheek pouches. Syria's golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) is a popular pet. Hamsters have a robust build, a tail that is significantly shorter than their body length, small hairy ears, short stocky legs, and broad feet. Their dense, long hair varies in color from grayish brown to reddish brown, depending on the species; their underparts are white to shades of gray and black. The Dzhungarian hamster (Phodopus sungorus) and the striped dwarf hamster (Cricetulus barabensis) both have a dark stripe running down the center of their backs. Dwarf desert hamsters (genus Phodopus) are the tiniest, measuring between 5 and 10 centimeters (approximately 2 and 4 inches) in length. The common hamster (Cricetus cricetus) is the largest, reaching a length of up to 34 cm, not including a short tail of up to 6 cm.

Hamsters are primarily nocturnal and solitary, although they are occasionally active in the early morning or late evening. They cannot climb but are superb diggers, excavating tunnels with one or more entrances and passages leading to chambers for nesting, food storage, and other activities. They also use tunnels created by other mammals; for example, the striped hairy-footed hamster (P. sungorus) utilizes the pika's routes and burrows. Their food is primarily comprised of grains, but they also consume fruit, roots, green plant parts, insects, and other tiny animals. Hamsters hoard food in their burrows using their large cheek pouches. None hibernate over the winter, but some go into a state of torpor for several days to several weeks. The breeding season lasts from April to October, with two to five litters of 1 to 13 young born after a 13 to 22-day gestation period.

The northern range of hamsters spans from central Europe to Korea, passing through Siberia, Mongolia, and northern China. Their southern range extends from Syria to Pakistan. They occupy desert borders, vegetated sand dunes, shrubby and rocky hillsides and plateaus, river valleys, and mountain steppes throughout the arid open region; some dwell among cultivated crops. The geographic distribution of species varies considerably. While the common hamster is distributed throughout central Europe, western Siberia, and northern China, the golden hamster has been discovered only near a small town in northwestern Syria. During the 1930s, zoologists gathered a litter of ten juvenile golden hamsters and transported them to Europe. Several of those animals reproduced successfully, and the colony grew.

Classification and evolutionary processes

The seven genus and eighteen species of hamsters comprise the subfamily Cricetinae of the order Rodentia's "real" mouse and rat family Muridae. In Europe and North Africa, their evolutionary history spans 11.2 million to 16.4 million years to the middle of the Miocene Epoch; in Asia, it spans 6 million to 11 million years. Four of the seven extant genera contain extinct species. For example, one ancient Cricetus hamster lived in North Africa during the middle Miocene, whereas the genus's only living member is the common hamster of Eurasia.