|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
Mice and Rats There are all sorts of cute mice and rats living in the deserts of the world. Most of them are fast and nimble, and are active mainly at night. They live in underground burrows to escape the daytime heat and to keep warm in winter. These warm, cosy burrows are also used as storerooms to store seeds and food. Gerbil Gerbils live in the African and Asian deserts. They have extra long hind legs for running and jumping. Jirds are also a kind of gerbil, and they are the most common type of small mammals. A jird from Mongolia has developed a communal lifestyle. This means some jirds group together and share food and a big burrow together. This is especially good in the winter. Jerboa
There are altogether 29 different species of jerboas in the desert. The jerboa is the fastest small mammal of the desert - hopping, rather than jumping, at 22mph. It has extremely long hind legs compared to the rest of its body. That is probably why jerboas can jump as high as 10ft! Being the fastest small mammal and able to jump at such a surprising height, jerboas can easily escape most predators. They must come out only at night, when it is cool. If they come out in the hot day bouncing and hopping like that, their energy would be used up pretty soon. Jerboas are tough little animals, for they can travel 14km (9 miles) a night looking for food like seeds, insects and roots. These food provide all the moisture they need and they don't have to drink water. They can be widely found in deserts, from the hot Sahara to the cold Mongolian deserts. During the hot summer months, jerboas may aestivate, which means they sort of hibernate in the summer. The Kangaroo Rat
[ The Kangaroo Rat---this is the very very small ] The pygmy kangaroos are just 12 inches long from nose to tail tip. Although they are as small as mice, they are so powerful that they can clear 8 feet of hot sand by just brushing their long tail, more(in proportion to size) than the large kangaroos can do in Australia! But the bigger kinds of kangaroo rats which live in the diest, hottest heart of the desert never drink! It is because of its body is redesigned to perform a chemical miracle--by just nibbling on dry seeds and dead stems, it can survive.
|
