Where do hamsters live in the wild? Life of hamsters in the wild Hamster in the wild.

Before meeting hamsters for the first time, people often underestimate them, considering them to be beautiful and harmless toys that can only survive in protected conditions. But when you find out where a hamster lives, you may be quite surprised - in wild places they successfully compete with other inhabitants of their range. Small rodents survive in harsh conditions, and to better understand their needs, it is worth carefully studying their lifestyle.

Which natural area How a hamster lives depends on whether it belongs to one species or another. They can be found in most areas Russian Federation, China, in the majority European countries and even in countries with desert climate– Syria and Iran. An attentive traveler can easily find them in the suburbs, squares and fields.

Steppe

They are also called. They are noticeably different from their closest relatives that can be found in pet stores. Peculiarities:

• males demonstrate aggressive behavior in relation to their own kind, they also often attack larger animals;
• nocturnal lifestyle. Burrows can go underground to a depth of 8 meters; at night they leave them in search of food, avoiding the attention of most predators;
• cleanliness. Hamster burrows are divided into several chambers - for sleeping, storing food, and relieving themselves.

Males live with several females; sometimes rodents settle in small colonies, creating large burrows.

Forest

They are found in forest belts, but are rare. Representatives of this group prefer well-protected areas in the forests of both Americas, Europe and Asia. Such hamsters do not have a clear way of life– males and females can live both separately and together. If they settle close to human habitation, they go out to “hunt” at night, making their way into storerooms. Such hamsters live in trees, hiding their homes with dried twigs.

Video: forest hamster

Field

The natural habitat is marshy areas. Such hamsters carefully avoid such places. They have a scaly tail and appearance that can make them mistaken for common voles. The maximum length is 20 centimeters; they make their home in reed thickets or fasten plant stems.

Wild representatives

Modern science knows 19 species representing the hamster family. Only on the territory of the Russian Federation there are 12 species, divided into six genera:

• Real;
• Average;
• Hairy Legs;
• Rat-like;

Each of them has unique external signs, thanks to which they can be classified. The largest of them reach a length of 34 centimeters. Some of them are found in Russia:

• Real ones. Weight about 500 grams, yellow-brown color, pronounced marks are visible on the sides white, small ears, paws shaped like human hands;
• Hairy-footed. They weigh no more than 30 g and have a sandy-golden color. Small white spots can be found on the face near the eyes and on the abdomen. The ears are large and stand upright;
• Rat-like. Medium size, weight up to 240 g, gray-brown color, turning into white towards the belly. Tail by appearance looks like a rat.

Almost all males are smaller than females. Rodents have four teeth sharp enough to chew hard objects. Teeth do not have roots, and their growth does not stop throughout life.

Nutrition of hamsters in nature

Hamsters are omnivores, but they prefer food plant origin. In summer they eat roots, greens, seeds, and, if possible, hunt insects. The largest individuals can feed on smaller mice, lizards or amphibians. Considering the way of life of hamsters, in winter they eat what they managed to stock up in their pantries:

• cereals;
• seeds;
• vegetable tubers.

One individual can accumulate up to 20 kilograms, and in rare cases the mass food products, stored on winter period, reaches 90 kg.

Origin

The official classification of representatives of the animal world appeared relatively recently, and for a long time hamsters, due to their small size, did not attract the attention of people. The first ancestors of hamsters were discovered in the Syrian desert by the scientist Waterhouse in 1839, who made a scientific description. Therefore, Syria can be considered the homeland of hamsters.

In 1930, a zoologist from Israel, Professor Aharoni, caught a wild hamster, and over time a whole group was identified, to which many species around the world were assigned. They began to be considered as pets in the second half of the 20th century.

Enemies of the hamster in nature

Wildlife – dangerous place, especially for small animals that are unable to defend themselves from attacks large predators. But, the natural enemies of the hamster only keep the number of rodents in acceptable numbers, but cannot destroy them as a species. Who eats hamsters:

• birds of prey. During the day, representatives of the hawk family pose a threat; at night, owls hunt hamsters;
• terrestrial predators. Wolves, lynxes, foxes, etc. While waiting or chasing game, these animals are able to satisfy their hunger by catching several rodents;
• pets. In suburban areas, hamsters can be attacked by cats and some breeds of hunting or service dogs.

Cats and dogs also pose a threat to pet hamsters, so the cage must be kept out of the reach of dogs or cats, otherwise they may attack and eat the smaller pet.

Life and enemies of a hamster in the wild

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A hamster is a mammal that belongs to the subclass animals, infraclass placentals, superorder Euarchontoglires, grand order rodents, order rodents, suborder mouse-like, family hamsters (Cricetidae).

The origin of the Russian word “hamster” is not fully determined, although, according to historians, one should lean towards the Old Slavonic roots of the word “khomistor”. English designation Hamster "hamster" comes from the German word "hamstern", which means "to store".

Is it possible to keep hamsters in the same cage?

It is better to keep hamsters separately, choosing an individual cage for each pet. Otherwise, fights may break out between males, and if you keep an opposite-sex pair, you risk becoming the owner huge number hamsters, because adults are very fertile. Although Roborovsky hamsters are sometimes kept in pairs: this species is not so active in reproduction and is more friendly to its relatives.

How to care for a hamster at home?

Caring for a hamster is quite simple, although there are some subtleties here.

• Your hamster should not be bathed in water. After such a procedure, he may catch a cold. Some species like to dig in the sand, cleaning their fur coat in this way. To do this, you can put a kind of “bathing bath” container with sand in the cage, which will have to be changed regularly.
• It is not recommended to let the hamster out of the cage, and if you do this, then only under the watchful supervision of the pet. The fact is that rodents experience irresistible craving to electrical wires, and, gnawing through the braiding, often die from electric shock. The best option is to equip your hamster with a small pen for walking or purchase a special walking ball.
• The hamster's cage needs to be cleaned a couple of times a week. These animals are quite neat and clean, so most often it is enough to just clean the corner that your pet has chosen as his toilet.

Taming a hamster is not a very difficult process, but it will require patience on your part. Put in a little effort, and in return you will get an affectionate, fearless and intelligent pet.

• Start taming your hamster by hand feeding it. Bring his favorite treat in your palm every day, trying not to make sudden movements. After some time, the emboldened hamster will accept food from your hands without fear.
• Try to pick up the hamster. It is better to do this not from above, but by carefully placing your palm under the rodent’s tummy while it is in the corner of the cage. In this position, the hamster will simply be forced to climb onto your hand. The main thing is not to scare the animal: talk to it gently, you can lightly cover the hamster with your second palm, warming it up and creating a kind of cozy shelter, gently stroke its fur, and offer something tasty.

Very soon the hamster will understand that the owner’s hands are not scary at all, but, on the contrary, it’s interesting, warm, and you can profit from a tasty morsel. Hamsters are quite smart, so they easily get used to a name and respond to a nickname, and if desired, they can be taught some tricks.

What to feed a hamster at home?

Omnivorous hamsters are ready to eat a lot and almost anything. However, if you want your pet to be healthy and live as long as possible, you should give him proper nutrition. You can feed your pet hamster the following foods:

• dry ready-made food for hamsters, which can be bought at a pet store;
• walnuts, peanuts, hazelnuts and sesame seeds;
• sunflower and pumpkin seeds;
• wheat and oat sprouts;
• barley, wheat, oats, buckwheat, lentils, white beans, chickpeas, peas (young in pods or slightly boiled, but without salt);
• strawberries, blueberries, pitted cherries, gooseberries, currants;
• pumpkin, carrots, beets, apples, cucumber, zucchini, turnips, bananas, cauliflower, rose hips, seeds and hairs removed (infrequently), bell pepper, fresh and dried corn, Jerusalem artichoke, pears, occasionally you can give peaches and melon;
• parsley, lettuce, dandelion, plantain and nettle, dill, clover and alfalfa. Under no circumstances should you pick up greenery along highways, near landfills and other dirty places;
• dried fruits: dried apricots, small quantities prunes, raisins;
• twigs of maple, ash, willow, birch, cherry, apple and pear;
• no more than a couple of times a week, the hamster’s diet includes low-fat cottage cheese, boiled lean meat (preferably chicken) and non-bony fish, boiled egg, insects (butterflies, grasshoppers, mealworms);
• As a treat, you can give unsweetened dryers, special sticks covered with cereal grains and seeds, unsalted popcorn without adding butter.

Place well-dried, soft hay or ears of cereal in the hamster's cage - this will be both additional food and material for arranging a nest. Take care of vitamins for your pet: mineral and vitamin supplements can be purchased at a specialty store. To feed young animals, you can include in the menu porridge made from rice, buckwheat or rolled oats, boiled in water, without sugar and salt. For constipation, sometimes the hamster is given a little vegetable oil. A hamster's home must have a drinking bowl with clean water.

Onions, garlic, mushrooms;

branches of coniferous plants.

• In Vietnam, it is prohibited to keep hamsters at home to prevent rodents from carrying dangerous diseases. Violators of the ban are subject to a hefty fine of 30 million dong.
• If a running wheel in a hamster's cage were to roll on a flat surface, then in just 12 hours the animal could cover a distance of 10 km.

Wild hamster in natural environment does not live as long as its domestic counterpart. This is due to more harsh conditions life, daily forcing these little animals to fight a number of negative external factors. They have many enemies: foxes, ferrets, kites, weasels. And this is not the entire list. And farmers have a negative attitude towards them, since with their raids in search of food they cause significant damage to agricultural land.

Description

Hamsters are mammals from the order Rodents and the Hamster family. There are about 19 species of wild hamsters, differing in appearance and size. The smallest representative has a body length that does not exceed 5 cm, and the largest - 35 cm.

The body is dense, the head is small, with a sharp muzzle and mustache. They have 16 teeth that do not stop growing throughout their lives. Therefore, they mercilessly grind them off on various hard objects.

Young animals have soft and silky fur, but with age it begins to become coarser. Color may vary:

• sandy;
• creamy;
• brown;
• golden;
• gray;
• white.

Black hamsters are rare.

A characteristic feature of all species is the presence of capacious cheek pouches in which the animals hide food.

In wild hamsters, females look much more respectable than males. These rodents - excellent swimmers and divers.

Wild hamsters have a fairly extensive habitat, covering Central and Eastern Europe, including Russia, as well as Syria, South Korea, Iran, China and Mongolia, Siberia. Mostly animals live in steppes, forests, and deserts. Some species rise high into the mountains, up to 2.5 thousand meters above sea level. Rodents love to nest near human settlements.

The most common types of hamsters are shown in the table.

Name	Description and habitat	Photos of species representatives
Steppe or ordinary	The most aggressive representative, capable of attacking even larger animals and humans. They often attack their fellows in mating season to eliminate an opponent. Lead nightlife, and during the day they hide in underground passages at a depth of up to 1.5 meters. In their lair they are able to collect quite substantial reserves of food, about 90 kg. This is quite understandable, since for the winter they settle in a hole without leaving. This hamster zealously protects his personal possessions from any encroachment from the outside. Females and males settle separately
Forest	Despite this name, these hamsters live not only in forests, but also in deserts and prairies. Often found near human habitation, in gardens and vegetable gardens. They do not have a single way of life: they live in pairs and alone, sleep and wake in different times. When near humans, hamsters prefer to sleep during the day and at night steal brush and build nests for themselves. They are usually located on trees. They do not hibernate during the winter, but can become numb.
Field	Found in Canada, Ecuador and Colombia. Mainly live in thickets tropical forests, beware of farmland. Sometimes found in swampy areas and prairies. They have an unusual multi-colored color. The tail is covered with small scales below and fluffy above. The body is from 5 to 20 cm long, depending on age
Dzungarian	The most studied species, which is most often subjected to domestication. Habitat: Central and Central Asia, Western Siberia, Kazakhstan. They were spotted in Altai. They prefer steppe and semi-desert areas. They are small in size: body length is about 10 cm. They are active at dusk and at night. They dig intricate labyrinthine holes with several entrances. They don’t sleep in winter, sometimes they jump outside to get food.
Syrian (golden)	It has a dense build, with a body length of up to 15 cm, a tail of 1.5-2 cm. It can be golden or light cream in color with a whitish belly. The weight of an adult reaches 130 grams. They live about 4 years. They live in Siberia and Turkey. Due to its limited range, the population is included in the Red Book

Lifestyle and nutrition

A characteristic feature of all hamsters is their solitary existence. Females and males live separately and only unite at the time of mating. Each has its own territory, which they jealously protect from the invasion of their own kind. Rodents dig holes for themselves in the form of long and intricate labyrinths underground, sometimes with a total length of up to three meters, and equip several spacious compartments there. They store food in them. This is how they prepare for non-stop living during the winter.

All hamsters are very thrifty and in the fall they fill their storage rooms with a fairly impressive amount of food (up to 90 kg). In Korea and China, poor people conduct a special search for hamster holes in order to collect grain for food.

The diet of hamsters includes both plant and animal foods., depends on the habitat. If there are grain fields nearby, then they will eat mainly grain.

Hamsters do not disdain insects and dead animals. If hamster settlements are located near summer cottages, then the menu is dominated by vegetables and other crops grown in gardens. Only they are not suitable as a winter reserve, so hamsters have to periodically raid barns in search of grain. In a particularly hungry year, there are cases of rodent attacks on chickens.

Hamsters eat:

• berries;
• young shoots of trees;
• foliage and plant roots;
• fruits;
• seeds and grains;
• wheat, corn;
• potato tubers, carrots, cabbage, beets;
• legumes;
• insects: locusts, grasshoppers, moths, ants, caterpillars, earthworms.

The animals usually go out for prey at night. Taste preferences they may differ depending on the species and place of residence. Thus, dormouse hamsters love to eat avocados and bananas, and mouse-like hamsters love pistachios.

Membranaceae periodically feed on seafood:

• crayfish;
• shellfish;
• crabs;
• fish.

Many types, for example common hamster, they hibernate for about five cold months. Only when very hungry do they wake up to refresh themselves and fall asleep again. As a result of a slowdown in metabolism during this period, they can easily survive harsh winter. Others continue to lead an active lifestyle and periodically go to the surface for food. Awakening usually occurs in February, when the ground thaws.

Getting out doesn't happen right away. For about a month, the underground inhabitants still sit in their burrows, eating up the remaining supplies. Only after a month do they open the passages. Immediately after hibernation, hamsters begin to collect preserved seeds and grains in the fields, then the turn of young shoots comes. The animals are not averse to tasting meat if weakened or wounded animals are encountered along the way.

They do not hunt themselves, except steppe hamsters. These are the most aggressive members of the family, and sometimes they even attack rabbits.

The lifespan of rodents is determined not only by living conditions, but also by belonging to a particular species. On average, the period varies from 2 to 7 years. In the wild, most die prematurely, as they become prey to large predators and birds: foxes, gray herons, kites, badgers, owls. There are frequent cases of their young being eaten by rooks and crows.

Where does a hamster live in the wild and what varieties are there? You may need to know the answers to these questions if your children ask to have a furry animal at home. Knowing how many years hamsters live and what kind of care they need, you can take optimal solution regarding whether you need such a pet. First, let's look at the features of the species.

Where does a hamster live?

In the mid-nineteenth century, a small furry animal was captured. Zoologist Waterhouse had never seen such a creature before. Having been brought to Europe, the animals began to breed in captivity. They were called Syrian golden hamsters. It turned out that they can become one of the most unpretentious pets. Where does it live in nature? Its habitat is the foothills, meadows and steppes of the Balkans, Turkey and Iran.

Another variety of these animals - Djungarian hamsters - lives in Central Asia And Southern Siberia. They adapt well to a wide variety of climate conditions. The mouse-like hamster lives in the mountains; it prefers semi-desert areas with rocky areas. It is very small in size. It is often confused with In the voids among the stones where the hamster lives, it makes burrows and can easily climb up embankments and cracks. For these small animals, winter is not an easy test; they prepare for it in advance. By autumn, the hamster's weight increases. Moreover, if the winter promises to be harsh, more fat appears around the neck and in the front of the body. This not only protects the animal from the cold, but also provides a source of nutrition during the cold months. In addition to subcutaneous reserves, the hamster also makes preparations in its underground pantry.

Some species of these animals can store up to ten kilograms of seeds and grains in their burrows. After the first frost sets in, small animals close the entrance to their home from the inside. But they do not hibernate, but continue to lead a less active lifestyle. Sometimes they come to the surface. Hamsters living in the northern regions change color in the winter - their fur coat turns white to provide good camouflage in the snow.

Should I have a furry animal at home?

Hamsters live (the years during which they will stay with you are enough to become attached to them) do not last long - one and a half or two years. So immediately think about the stress your family members (especially children) will experience when your pet dies. If you are ready to survive this shock in the future, and can also devote some time every day to caring for the animal, then feel free to get a hamster. The tiny rodent requires very little space for itself. Setting up a cage is not difficult - the hamster loves to climb tunnels and rocks. It will have to be cleaned regularly, as well as the water changed and the feeder refilled daily. Even children as young as eight or nine years old can perform these manipulations. Hamsters also have negative traits. The constant need to chew something can pose a threat to your apartment. However, if you carefully monitor the rodent, it will not be able to cause significant harm.

They may be one of the most popular pets in the world, but have you ever wondered what a... natural environment hamster habitat?

Wild hamster in sandy habitat in Syria.

Many children growing up in places like Canada and the United States have the experience of caring for a hamster, perhaps even as their very first pet. But where did these attractive little creatures come from? Where do they live in the wild?

Hamster story

The first known wild hamsters can be traced to countries such as Syria, Belgium, parts of northern China, Greece and Romania. Living alone in the desert, these small rodents made their homes in warm, dry places such as deserts and sand dunes.

Hamsters brought from Syria to the United States back in 1936 are known to be some of the first domesticated hamster species, according to the Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association. Interestingly, the word "hamster" comes from the German word "hamstern", which means "to lay". This is a handy description of how these little creatures store food not only in their homes, but also in the way they pee food into pouches on their cheeks.

Characteristics of Hamsters

Like other rodents, hamsters are characterized by their small bodies, short tails and tiny ears. Their fur is included wide range colors and shades, including black, yellow, white, brown, gray or a mixture of these colors.

There are currently about twenty-four species of hamsters, which vary in size. For example, European varieties can measure over 13 inches in length. On the opposite side of the spectrum, so-called dwarf hamsters can only grow two to four inches. The species most commonly purchased as a pet is the Syrian/ teddy bear/ golden variety of hamster, usually reaching about six inches in length.
Hamsters can be gentle by nature, but are known to bite, especially when they are scared o

R suddenly woke up. Small rodents must also cope poor eyesight, which forces them to rely on their sense of smell, which is used to gather scent from their scent trails located on their backs.

Hamster behavior

As nocturnal animals, hamsters prefer to be active at night. Wild hamsters dig a series of tunnels that provide them with enough living space to spend most of their time. The tunnels also serve to store food and environment large enough for breeding purposes. Living underground also provides small rodents with more cold temperature in hot climates. When it gets too cold, outside wild hamsters will choose to winter in their carefully constructed tunnels.

In terms of getting along with each other, some species of hamsters, such as the dwarf, are social, while others, such as the Syrians, are territorial and prefer to be solitary.

Hamster diet

Wild hamsters have a diet consisting of small animals such as frogs, lizards and a variety of insects.

Hamster conservation

In Syria, the wild golden hamster has been classified as vulnerable to extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Red List. One of the main reasons for this status is human intervention in the habitats of local hamsters.
It is important to remember that a domesticated hamster cannot survive on its own and cannot be returned to the wild.