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Common hamster - CRICETUS CRICETUS
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Hamster": "Hamster" is the German word for the animal.
Location: Central eastern Europe and Asia.
Habitat: Terrestrial. Steppe and cultivated land.
Description: The coat on the back is reddish brown, and black on the underside of the body. This is quite unusual, since most mammals are paler beneath. Over the cheek pouches, which open within the month, there are white markings. The snout is somewhat pointed as in rodents generally, and the ears are rounded and membranous. This hamster can reach about a foot long, two and one half inches of which are tail. It can weigh over 13 ounces.
Behavior: The stocky common hamster feeds on cereal crops, potatoes, and beets, and also on small birds and rodents. It makes large stockpiles of food within its burrow system, which is dug in the ground and has an intricate network of tunnels. The food intended for storage is carried in its cheek pouches, which can hold remarkable amounts of food. This solitary animal is most active in the morning and evening, and hibernates through the winter.
Reproduction: There may be two or more litters a year, with five to twelve young per littler, which nurse for about three weeks. Gestation lasts just three weeks or less.
Go to the Rodents Page to learn more about all the gnawing animals.
Go to the Golden Hamster for
the only other Hamster listed in America Zoo.
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