Jerboa

Jerboa ni wanyama wagugunaji wa nusufamilia Allactaginae, Cardiocraniinae, Dipodinae na Euchoreutinae katika familia Dipodidae wanaofanana na kanguruu wadogo kwa sababu wana miguu mirefu ya nyuma na miguu mifupi ya mbele. Wanatokea maeneo makavu katika Afrika ya Kaskazini na Asia.

Jerboa
Jerboa mdogo (Jaculus jaculus)
Uainishaji wa kisayansi
Himaya: Animalia (Wanyama) Faila: Chordata (Wanyama wenye ugwe wa neva mgongoni) Ngeli: Mamalia (Wanyama wenye viwele wanaonyonyesha wadogo wao) Oda: Rodentia (Wanyama wagugunaji) Nusuoda: Myomorpha (Wanyama kama panya) Familia: Dipodidae (Wanyama walio na mnasaba na mabuku) Fischer von Waldheim, 1817
Ngazi za chini
Nusufamilia 4 (spishi 4 katika Afrika): Allactaginae Vinogradov, 1925 Allactaga tetradactyla (Lichtenstein, 1823) Cardiocraniinae Vinogradov, 1925 Dipodinae Fischer von Waldheim, 1817 Jaculus hirtipes (Lichtenstein, 1823) Jaculus jaculus (Linnaeus, 1758) Jaculus orientalis Erxleben, 1777 Euchoreutinae Lyon, 1901

Maelezo

Jerboa ni wagugunaji wadogo hadi wa kadiri wenye urefu wa mwili wa sm 4-26 bila mkia, ambao ni mpaka maradufu wa urefu wa mwili. Wote wametoholewa kwa kuruka ingawa kwa viwango tofauti. Wana miguu mirefu sana ya nyuma ambayo, katika spishi nyingi, inajumuisha mifupa mirefu ya metakarpali. Wanasonga ama kwa kuruka au kwa kutembea kwa miguu yao ya nyuma. Mkia mrefu wa jerboa husaidia katika kuweka usawaziko wao.

Wengi ni walavyote na lishe yao ni mbegu na wadudu. Spishi kadhaa za jerboa hata hivyo, kama Allactaga sibirica, ni karibu walawadudu kabisa. Kama wagugunaji wengine wana meno ya mbele ya kutafuna yaliyotengwa kwa pengo (diastema) na meno ya shavu ya kusaga.

Jerboa hufanya viota vyao kwenye vishimo ambavyo vinaweza kuwa tata kwa vyumba vya pembeni ambapo huhifadhi chakula chao. Spishi nyingi hulala wakati wa baridi kwa angalau nusu mwaka zikinusurika kwa mafuta zinayounda katika wiki kadhaa kabla ya kulala.

Majike huzaa wachanga wawili hadi saba baada ya kipindi cha ujauzito kati ya siku 17 na 42. Wanazaana mara moja au mbili kwa mwaka kulingana na spishi.

Spishi za Afrika

• Allactaga tetradactyla, Jerboa vidole-vinne (Four-toed jerboa)
• Jaculus hirtipes, Jerboa Hamada (African hammada jerboa)
• Jaculus jaculus, Jerboa Mdogo (Lesser Egyptian jerboa)
• Jaculus orientalis, Jerboa Mkubwa (Greater Egyptian jerboa)

Spishi za Asia

• Allactaga balikunica (Balikun jerboa)
• Allactaga bullata (Gobi jerboa)
• Allactaga elater (Small five-toed jerboa)
• Allactaga euphratica (Euphrates jerboa)
• Allactaga firouzi (Iranian jerboa)
• Allactaga hotsoni (Hotson's jerboa)
• Allactaga major (Great jerboa)
• Allactaga severtzovi (Severtzov's jerboa)
• Allactaga sibirica (Mongolian five-toed jerboa)
• Allactaga toussi (Toussi jerboa)
• Allactaga vinogradovi (Vinogradov's jerboa)
• Allactaga williamsi (Williams's jerboa)
• Allactodipus bobrinskii (Bobrinski's jerboa)
• Cardiocranius paradoxus (Five-toed pygmy jerboa)
• Dipus sagitta (Northern three-toed jerboa)
• Eremodipus lichtensteini (Lichtenstein's jerboa)
• Euchoreutes naso (Long-eared jerboa)
• Jaculus blanfordi (Blanford's jerboa)
• Jaculus thaleri (Thaler's jerboa)
• Paradipus ctenodactylus (Comb-toed jerboa)
• Pygeretmus platyurus (Lesser fat-tailed jerboa)
• Pygeretmus pumilio (Dwarf fat-tailed jerboa)
• Pygeretmus shitkovi (Greater fat-tailed jerboa)
• Salpingotulus michaelis (Baluchistan pygmy jerboa)
• Salpingotus crassicauda (Thick-tailed pygmy jerboa)
• Salpingotus heptneri (Heptner's pygmy jerboa)
• Salpingotus kozlovi (Kozlov's pygmy jerboa)
• Salpingotus pallidus (Pale pygmy jerboa)
• Salpingotus thomasi (Thomas's pygmy jerboa)
• Stylodipus andrewsi (Andrews's three-toed jerboa)
• Stylodipus sungorus (Mongolian three-toed jerboa)
• Stylodipus telum (Thick-tailed three-toed jerboa)

Picha

• 
  Small five-toed jerboa
• 
  Northern three-toed jerboa
• 
  Thick-tailed three-toed jerboa