Jerboas are hopping desert rodents found throughout Northern Africa and Asia east to northern China and Manchuria.
LEARN MORE INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE JERBOA BELOW
There are 33 distinct species of jerboa in a larger group of rodents that include the woodland jumping mice and the quadrupedal tree-climbing birch mice.
They are found in the deserts
of Northern Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, China, and Mongolia.
They are found in the deserts
of Northern Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, China, and Mongolia.
Some species of jerboa are endangered or threatened, but the species we study is not. Historically, they’ve been a favored meal of Bedouin tribes. According to “A History of the World in 6 Glasses” by Tom Standage, a feast for King Ashurnasirpal of Assyria in 870 BCE served 10,000 jerboas!
The
smallest jerboa, Salpingotus michaelis, weighs about
4 grams…
…and the largest, Allactaga major, tops the scales at 400 grams.
In the wild, jerboas live in burrows they dig in the desert sand and emerge at dusk and again at dawn to find food and mate. In our lab, we replicate the “burrow” with an enclosed nesting box to give them dark and peace and quiet during the day. They also get a dust bath of the same dust used for Chinchillas. Sand bathing is necessary to keep their fur clean and healthy.
In the wild, jerboas eat the seeds, roots, and leaves of desert plants. In our lab they get a fresh “salad” every day plus a mix of small birdseeds.
They love the seeds so much...
…they will toss the vegetables over their shoulders to get down to the bottom of the bowl where the seeds settle.
Can jerboas be kept as pets?
Our animals are allowed on a research waiver, but we are not able to distribute pets to the public.
Unfortunately in the US they are on a list of restricted rodents from Africa due to an outbreak of monkey pox in 2003.
Our animals are allowed on a research waiver, but we are not able to distribute pets to the public.
Unfortunately in the US they are on a list of restricted rodents from Africa due to an outbreak of monkey pox in 2003.
