Persian Jird

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Persian jird
Persian jird, female, two and a half years old.
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Genus: Meriones
Subgenus: Parameriones
Species: M. persicus
Binomial name
Meriones persicus
(Blanford, 1875)

The Persian Jird (Meriones persicus) is a species of rodent in the Muridae family. It is found in Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and Turkmenistan.

The Persian jird is about 6 inches long. It has a brush-tipped tail that is slightly longer than the body. They are wild brown with white bellies.

They live in dry rocky hillsides with little plant life and semi-desert areas. The eat dry plant material and grains, and sometimes small insects.

Persian jirds usually have two litters a year. Each litter has around seven pups.

Some people keep them as a pet. They can live to be six or seven years old. They need large cages that let them climb and leap.