Jerboa
Jerboas (from Arabic: جربوع jarbūʻ ) are hopping desert rodents found throughout North Africa and Asia, and are members of the family Dipodidae. They tend to live in hot deserts.
| Jerboa Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Scarturus tetradactylus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Dipodoidea |
| Family: | Dipodidae Fischer de Waldheim, 1817 |
| Subfamilies | |
| |
When chased, jerboas can run at up to 24 km/h (15 mph). Some species are preyed on by little owls (Athene noctua) in central Asia. Most species of jerboas have excellent hearing that they use to avoid becoming the prey of nocturnal predators. The typical lifespan of a jerboa is around 2–3 years.
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