Myodes macrotis (Radde 1862)
- Dataset
- Cricetidae
- Rank
- SPECIES
Classification
- kingdom
- Animalia
- phylum
- Chordata
- class
- Mammalia
- order
- Rodentia
- family
- Cricetidae
- genus
- Myodes
- species
- Myodes macrotis
activity
Activity patterns. Circadian activity of the Long-eared Vole is polyphasic. Although mainly sheltering among rocks, it also dig burrows.
biology_ecology
Habitat. Rocky areas in forest steppe, subalpine, and alpine meadows and rocky tundra at elevations of 1500 - 3000 m. Habitat is humid and cold at night and in winter. From end of September to mid-May, Large-eared Voles typically live under 1 - 3 m of SNOW.
biology_ecology
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Long-eared Vole is fast and capable ofjumping 20 - 30 cm.
breeding
Breeding. Female Large-eared Voles have two litters annually, each with 4 - 7 young.
conservation
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List (as Alticola macrotis).
description
Descriptive notes. Head — body 93 - 2 - 115 - 4 mm, tail 32 - 1 - 45 - 5 mm; weight 23 - 7 - 39 - 2 g. The Large-eared Vole is chunky, with densely haired and tufted tail and large semicircular ears. Whiskers are long. Tail accounts for ¢. 33 % of head-body length and is either uniformly white or distinctly bicolored, with all transitions in between. Fur is long (mean 13 - 2 mm), soft, and gray throughout. Back is shaded buff and is darker than belly. Skull shows no peculiarities; it is lightly ridged, with relatively large braincase. Mandible is shallower than in other species of Myodes. Molars do not differ essentially from pattern seen in the Bank Vole (M. glareolus), except for being rootless.
discussion
Externally, Myodes macrotis closely resembles species of Alticola and, not surprisingly, was included in Alticola or Aschizomys. Molecular evidence firmly placed macrotis in Myodes as a closest relative to M. glareolus or M. centralis. Three subspecies recognized.
food_feeding
Food and Feeding. The Large-eared Vole depends primarily on green plant material and, to a lesser extent, on seeds, fruits, and Cladonia cup lichens. Green plants are more important in alpine tundra than at tree line. Main vascular plants in diets are berries (Vaccinium, Ericaceae), honeysuckle (Lonicera hispida, Caprifoliaceae), Alpine sweetvetch (Hedysarum alpinum, Fabaceae), and mountain avens (Dryas oxyodonta, Rosaceae). The Lage-eared Vole does not cache food.
synonymic_list
Subspecies and Distribution. M. m. macrotisRadde, 1862 — fromCAltaiandSayanMtstotheLakeBaikalandWTransbaikaliarangesinRussiaandMongolia. M. m. fetisoviGalkina & Jepifantseva, 1988 — NHentaiMts, ZabaykalskyKrai (Russia). M. m. vinogradovi Rasorenova, 1933 — W & C Altai Mts in Russia, Mongolia, and N Xinjiang (China).
Name
- Synonyms
- Arvicola macrotis Radde 1862
- Homonyms
- Myodes macrotis (Radde 1862)
- Common names
- Campagnol a grandes oreilles in French
- GroRohrrotelmaus in German
- Large-eared Mountain Vole in English
- Large-eared Vole in English
- Topillo rojo de orejas grandes in language.