The field hamster is the largest species of rodents that inhabit the wilderness and has nothing to do with pet hamsters. It has well-developed fingers, which help him to cope with the digging of holes.
At the meeting of the field hamster with a man, he shows no interest, moreover, behaves aggressively towards people.
To describe the field hamster can be on the features that it has:
- Small ears, and large, gleaming eyes.
- Has a thick head and a short neck. The body is stocky with a short neck, rolling in the head.
- The legs are short, has well-developed legs with small claws.
This animal has a coatconsisting of two elements. The first is an undercoat, thanks to him, the hamster warm in the cold conditions of wild nature. He is not afraid of subzero temperature of winter. The main coat hamster has a light yellow color or brown. Sometimes there are specimens with dark spots.
An interesting feature in color, are the white feet of the animal. But the limbs are black in color. In the steppes can be found in the hamsters of any color, they come in both white and black therefore, to rely solely on the color of the animal if the identification is not necessary.
Males field hamsters reach up to 34 inches in length, not including tail.
Habitat
The steppe hamster lives on vast territories. His family spread from Europe to China. In Russia he meets in the Smolensk region, to taiga. For them there is no need in special circumstances to stay, by this it can be found almost everywhere. It is found in corn and wheat fields, and some prefer to settle closer to the people near villages.
Sometimes, settling next to the man of the steppe hamsters can steal vegetables from the garden. They are able to get into the barns and storerooms. Act as Pets the mouse, steal and carry stocks in burrows. But the problem is that the hamster in contrast to the mouse much more aggressive attitude towards man, and the collision is able to pounce. People often use traps to catch the animal, suspecting his presence in your residential area.
The greater part of his life, the steppe hamster spends in the hole. All because for hunting he has to spend most of their time in leisure. The burrow of this rodent can reach up to 1-2 meters in depth. The depth and design depend on the structure of the earth, as it is easy to dig.
Housing of the animal consists of a living camera, and inputs. A dwelling in which lives the hamster has three entrances. The first two inputs are intended to move the hamster into the house and back, the third entrance to the room leads to the corridor where animal hides stocks and uses them in case of emergency during the winter. On other days, stocks from the pantry he touches.
To define the habitat of a hamster can be buildings that he makes. Near the entrance to the hole, you’ll a handful of earth, near which is often the husks of various grains.
If you shove a stick into the hole, and pull on it there should be no debris. The presence of debris, cobwebs, moss, grass and leaves, suggeststhat Nora abandoned and rodent does not live in it.
Nutrition field hamster
Food hamster steppe, depends to a greater extent because of where he lives. If its habitat is in areas of wheat fields, then it will eat largely grain plants. Hamsters don’t represent a serious harm to agriculture. These rodents benefit on the grain fields, those that eat the small parasites than render a great service to man.
In the diet of the hamster include:
- Crops
- Vegetables from the gardens of people
- Bugs
- Small size animals
Animal that lives near the villages, is to eat foods grown in the gardens. But hamsters can not collect these crops as food for winter, so there are cases when rodents get into the pantry and stores for the theft of grain. There have been cases of attack hamsters to Pets, they can kill the Chicks in those situations when there no one to protect them.
Field in winter, hamsters hibernate in winter, slowing its metabolism to transfer the harsh climate. The awakening takes place in February when the ground starts to be frozen. After waking up the hamsters did not immediately reveal their homes. First, he some time dwells in a hole, eats their remaining stocks, and a month later, he goes outside to search for food. Females unlike the males leave the burrow later, closer to the time of mating.
This rodent is not against to eat meat, to hunt but he won’t. In food, he uses the meat in cases where you happen to find dead or wounded animal.
Reproduction
The breeding of rodents occurs at the end of autumn. In the second half of may, after 4-5 weeks after mating, the female hamster goes into the hole. One female gives birth to light from 6 to 18 individuals. Babies are born bald and blind, but they already have teeth. Children grow very quickly on day 3, they have fluff. In a week they will open their eyes and begin to move around the nest exploring a new world.
Males usually take care of several females simultaneously, in order to in case of defeat in the struggle for the female had the chance to procreate with another. Mother securely watch over their cubs are born, they are able to adopt other children and to nurse them as their own. But kids have a negative attitude to others. They are able to kill the adopted child, if he is weak.
Hamsters are by nature very aggressive rodents. Other members of the family of rodents, prefer not catches the eye of other animals and people, but this beast will climb in the battle at the first opportunity. They are able without fear to rush even for big dogs.
There are times when the males bite the females are weak, when there is no mating season. But during mating, if one claims to be female several males, they engage in a battle where the winner is the strongest representative, and the weak perish.
One male is able to keep under control of 12 acres of land, females are slightly smaller.
They arrange the battle for territory, when one male begins to lay claim to any land.
Catching hamsters
The nature of the steppe hamster very angry. But in those situations when he was caught and raised in captivity, it is not aggressive to man. Not to say that this kind of dying, on the contrary, he excels in the reproduction and colonization of the fields, so to catch him for artificial maintenance of the species is not necessary.
But there are various fields that are aimed at extraction of resources from hamsters. To catch them it is necessary in spring and autumn. This is done before the molt occurs, if caught the hamster has damage on the body after the fight, it is desirable to release into the wild.
Catch them in traps, setting at the entrance to the hole, a little digging into the ground. The trap damages the limbs of the animal, but the skin remains intact. In the hole filled with water, and in such situations the animal to escape is not possible. The skins of this rodent are used in industry, they are highly valued and have good quality.
