The great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus ) is a large rodent found throughout much of Central Asia.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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FrugivoreA frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts, and seeds. Approx...
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CoprophageCoprophage animals are those that consume feces. Domesticated and wild mammals are sometimes coprophagic, and in some species, this forms an essent...
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GranivoreSeed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores (seed predators) feed on the seeds of pla...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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FossorialA fossorial animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, ...
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BurrowingA burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
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ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
Among animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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ColonialColonial animals live in large aggregations composed of two or more conspecific individuals in close association with or connected to, one another....
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Great gebril is the largest species of gebril. These animals have a yellowish-orange, or dark grayish-yellow coat which matches the sandy deserts they inhabit. Great gerbils spend winters under snowpack and have thick, soft fur and a long-haired tails. They have large front claws used for burrowing.
Great gerbils are found in Central Asia, western South Asia, China and Mongolia. They occur in Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and have a smaller distribution in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. In South Asia, they are found in northern Afghanistan and western Pakistan. Great gerbils inhabit arid habitats, predominantly sandy or clay deserts.
Great gerbils are often colonial and live in family groups. They occupy one burrow per family. Their burrows can be fairly extensive with separate chambers for nests and food storage. During the winter Great gerbils spend most of the time in their burrows keeping each other warm but do not hibernate. They are predominantly diurnal creatures which means that they are active during the day and sleep at night.
Great gerbils are herbivores (folivores, frugivores). They feed on different plants, seeds, fruits, roots, stems, bulbs, and shrubs.
Little is known about the mating system and reproductive behavior of Great gerbils. Breeding takes place after the rainy season and lasts from April to September. Females usually produce two or three litters. The gestation period lasts 23-32 days and the average litter size in the wild is 4-7 young. Females are known to reach reproductive maturity at 3-4 months of age.
There are no major threats to Great gerbils. However, they can locally suffer from habitat degradation through overgrazing of vegetation by livestock.
The IUCN Red List and other sources do not provide the Great gerbil total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today remain stable.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...