Lemmings - are small rodents that live in the forest and tundra of North America and Eurasia.There are several kinds of these animals.Thus, the Siberian lemming common in Kamchatka and many Arctic islands on the tundra of the Arctic.
In this article, learn more about these animals: what they eat, how to look, live and breed.
Distribution
this lemming lives in the tundra of Eurasia, between the rivers of the Northern Dvina and the Onega River to the lower reaches of the Kolyma River.Also inhabit the island, such as White, Vaigach, Siberian, Wrangel.Basically the southern boundary of the range coincides with the northern part of the forest-tundra.Isolated individual populations observed in swampy taiga Kolyma lowland.
Geographic variation
It should be noted that the mainland forms marked decrease in size depending on the direction.So, lemming on the tundra in the west lives the largest decreases in the eastern direction.This reddish-ocher in color replaced black tones, extending to the cheeks, hips and lower torso, with a dark dorsal stripe disappears.Winter coloring turns gray and brightens.In animals Siberian Islands, it is almost pure white.Also, it should be noted that the island forms a much larger mainland.
Appearance
Lemming - an animal that is a small rodent of the short-length of his body - 18 cm, and the tail - to 17 mm.It reaches a weight of 130 g, while the heavier males females by 10%.The general tone of the animal - reddish-yellow with a small admixture of brownish and gray tones.On the ridge of the nose to tail basically is a thin black strip.Boca cheeks and bright rusty tinge;pale whitish belly, occasionally with a touch of yellow.In the ears and eyes are dark blurred stripes.
black spot on the rump is characteristic of animals with about.Wrangel and the New Siberian Islands.Winter fur dimmer and brighter summer, occasionally almost white, with a thin strip on the back of a light brown color.The continental subspecies several smaller continental;the gradual disappearance of the strip and the reduction in size is observed in an easterly direction.Diploid number of chromosomes - 50 pieces.
Reproduction
Siberian lemming very prolific.Thus, the female lays 3 to 5 pups 6 times a year.Periodically, they just breed in large numbers.In this case, there is a lack of food, after which the animals commit mass resettlement, while moving in a straight line, like locusts, devouring everything and that they can chew on.The
eat lemmings?
Basically they eat sedges, shrubs twigs sometimes.Eat well in the case of berries, insects gnaw antlers, animals dropped earlier.If you figure out what to eat lemmings in the winter, it is worth noting that sometimes they gnaw lichen and moss on the plots of land of about a meter and a half.When the snow compacted often come to the surface of the earth.
Lifestyle
With narrow-skulled vole and arctic lemming is the most common type of rodent tundra.The biggest number reaches the polygon, and tussock tundra plains with well-developed sedge-moss.Meets lemming, a photo of which is presented in this article, in the valleys of lakes and rivers in low mountain and foothill sedge-shrub tundra, on wetlands.It penetrates through the swamps in the forest zone.
prerequisite for the existence of a living animal feed and convenient locations for holes (peat and dirt mounds, sphagnum moss and pillows).The polygonal tundra (with micro-relief in the form of large polygons, which are divided frost cracks) the lemming (photo animal can be found in this article) is living in the cracks of the peat layer, thus using them for fast movement.
feature of lifestyles animals dwelling in the snow is the main part of the year.They winter tied to various areas with snow cover 0.5-1 m: beds of streams, rivers, lakes dry tundra and marshlands.Pave moves under the snow, spherical construct nests from various plant rags and dig snow chamber.In winter, the Siberian lemming lives boring.
during snowmelt water poured settlements animals, and they are moving to the thawed, after which point in the summer habitat.There's small elevations dig simple burrows.They also hold various natural shelters.Surface paving moves to the feeding grounds.In adult females in the snow-free period perfectly expressed territoriality;young and adult males wander through the territory of a fairly random, stopping in various temporary shelters.
number
It should be noted that the number of animals varies greatly: sometimes practically impossible to meet periodically (every 5 years) the animals scurrying everywhere, are not afraid of man, with a rather aggressive.During these years, increases in the same places and the number of arctic lemming, while the number of bank voles - in the woods.
Siberian lemming at this time flooding the mountain valleys and villages, sometimes trying to cross the creeks and rivers and the massive die.With its large number of colonies of rodents did not settle and to each other are aggressive.This migration may look organized movements, though each lemming actually moves independently, and only the external obstacles are sometimes forced to come together.
