Siberian Lemming: Description, Reproduction, Nutrition

Lemmings are small rodents that live in the forest-tundra and tundra of North America and Eurasia. There are several species of these animals. Thus, Siberian lemmings are widespread in Kamchatka and many Arctic islands, along the tundra of the Arctic.

In this article we learn the details of these animals: what they eat, how they look, live and reproduce.

Spread

This lemming lives in the tundra of Eurasia from the interfluve of the Northern Dvina and Onega to the lower reaches of the Kolyma. Also inhabits such islands as White, Vaigach, Novosibirsk, Wrangel. Basically, the southern border of the range coincides with the northern part of the forest-tundra. Isolated individual populations were recorded in the swampy taiga of the Kolyma Lowland.

Geographic variation

It should be noted that the continental forms have a decrease in size depending on the direction. Thus, lemming in the tundra in the west lives the largest, decreases in the eastern direction. In this case, brownish-ohrist shades are replaced in color by black tones that extend to the cheeks, sides, and also the lower part of the trunk, while the dark dorsal stripe disappears. Winter coloring is gray and brightens. In the animals of the Novosibirsk islands it is almost pure white. It should be noted that the island forms are much larger than the continental ones.

Appearance

Lemming - an animal that is a short-tailed small rodent: the length of its body - up to 18 cm, and the tail - up to 17 mm. Reaches weight in 130 g, while males are heavier than females by 10%. The general tone of the animal is reddish-yellow with a small admixture of brownish and gray tones. On the ridge from the nose to the tail, a thin black strip mostly passes. Boka and cheeks of a bright rusty shade; Pale-belly belly, periodically with an admixture of yellow color. In the field of the auricles and eyes there are dark fuzzy bands.

On the rump, the black spot is characteristic of the animals with Fr. Wrangel and the Novosibirsk Islands. Winter fur dimmer and lighter than summer, periodically almost white, with a thin strip on the back of a light brown hue. Mainland subspecies are somewhat smaller than continental subspecies; The gradual disappearance of the strip and the reduction in size is observed in the east. Diploid amount of chromosomes - 50 pieces.

Reproduction

The Siberian lemming is very prolific. So, the female sways from 3 to 5 cubs 6 times a year. Periodically, they multiply simply in huge numbers. In this case, there is a lack of food, after which the animals make mass migrations, while moving in a straight line, like locusts, and devouring everything that they can bite.

What do lemmings eat?

Basically they eat sedge, sometimes twigs of shrubs. They also eat berries, insects, and bite deer horns, which were dropped by animals earlier. If we find out what the lemmings feed in the winter, then it is worth noting that sometimes they gnaw the moss and moss on the areas of about a meter and a half. When snow is compacted, they often come to the surface of the earth.

Lifestyle

Together with the narrow skull and hoofed lemmings, it belongs to the most common species of tundra rodents . The greatest abundance reaches in the polygonal, kochkarny and flat tundra with a well-developed sedge-moss cover. There is a lemming, the photo of which is presented in this article, in the valleys of lakes and rivers, in the low-mountain and foothill sedge-shrub tundra, on wetlands. Penetrates through the swamps into the forest zone.

Obligatory conditions for the animal's habitat are the availability of feed and convenient places for construction of burrows (peat and ground mounds, moss and sphagnum pillows). In the polygonal tundra (with microrelief in the form of large polygons, which are broken by frost cracks), lemmings (the photo of the animal can be seen in this article) live in peat layer cracks, while using them for rapid movement.

A characteristic feature of the way of life of animals is the dwelling under the snow for the main part of the year. In winter they are attached to different sites with a snow cover of 0.5-1 m: streambeds, river banks, tundra drying up lakes, and also marshy lowlands. Pave the way under the snow, build ball-shaped nests from various plant rags and dig snow cameras. In winter Siberian lemmings are dull.

During the melting of snow, the water is flooded with animal settlements, and they move to thawed patches, and then to summer habitats. There on small elevations simple burrows are digging. They also occupy various natural shelters. Surface moves are laid to the forage areas. In adult females, during the snowless period, territoriality is well expressed; Young animals and adult males roam the territory quite randomly, lingering in various temporary shelters.

Number of

It should be noted that the number of animals varies very much: sometimes they practically can not be met, periodically (every 5 years) animals scurry around everywhere, completely not afraid of man, and they are quite aggressive. In these years, the number of hoofed lemmings is increasing in the same places, while the number of red voles is in the forests.

The Siberian lemming at this time floods the mountain valleys and villages, sometimes tries to swim the bays and rivers and as a result, massively perishes. With a large number of rodents, the colonies do not settle and each other are aggressive. In this case, migrations may look like organized movements, although each lemming actually moves on its own, and only external obstacles sometimes force them to come together.