Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
In the past Cricetus was considered a serious agricultural pest because of its impact on corn and other crops. Modern agricultural techniques have diminished its impact.
The common hamster is trapped in some parts of its range for skins.
The diet is diverse and includes grains, beans, lentils, roots, green parts of plants, insect larvae and frogs.
Cricetus cricetus is found in Eurasia from Belgium to the Altai region of Siberia.
Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native )
The habitat of the common hamster includes steppe, agricultural land and riverbanks. Burrows are usually in loam of loess soils in the western part of the range.
Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 2.0 years.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 4.0 years.
The fur is light brown on the back, white on the sides and black on the belly (hence the name black-bellied hamster). There is a wide range of variation, however, including both albino and melanistic animals. The small tail is mostly hairless. Cricetus has cheek pouches.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Average mass: 506.7 g.
Average basal metabolic rate: 1.251 W.
The breeding season in Cricetus lasts from April to August. It is not clear if males are driven away by females after mating or if the pair remains together to raise the offspring. Females normally have two litters of 4-12 young per year, though captive animals are capable of reproducing every month. Gestation is 18-20 days long and birth weight is usually about 7 grams. Young are weaned at 3 weeks and attain adult size at 8 weeks. Female are sexually mature at 43 days.
Key Reproductive Features: gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual
Average birth mass: 7 g.
Average gestation period: 20 days.
Average number of offspring: 7.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
Sex: male: 56 days.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female: 43 days.
The European hamster (Cricetus cricetus), also known as the Eurasian hamster,[3] black-bellied hamster[4] or common hamster,[5][6][1] is the only species of hamster in the genus Cricetus.[2] It is native to grassland and similar habitats in a large part of Eurasia, extending from Belgium to the Altai Mountains and Yenisey River in Russia.[7] Historically, it was considered a farmland pest and had been trapped for its fur. Its population has declined drastically in recent years and is now considered critically endangered.[1][8] The main threats to the species are thought to be intensive agriculture, habitat destruction, and persecution by farmers.[1]
The European hamster has brown dorsal fur with white patches. The chest and belly are black. The tail is short and furred. It is much larger than the Syrian (Mesocricetus auratus) or dwarf hamsters (Phodopus sp.), which are commonly kept as pets, and is the largest known species of hamster. It weighs 220–460 g (7.8–16.2 oz) and can grow to 20–35 cm (8–14 in) long with a tail of 4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 in). Its dental formula is 1.0.0.31.0.0.3. In captivity, the European hamster has an unusually long lifespan for a rodent, living up to eight years.
The common hamster is a nocturnal or crepuscular species. It lives in a complex burrow system. It eats seeds, legumes, root vegetables, grasses and insects. It transports its food in its elastic cheek pouches to the food storage chambers. The storage chambers may be quite large and on average contain 2–3 kg (4.4–6.6 lb) of food, but exceptionally can be up to 65 kg (143 lb).[9][10] It hibernates between October and March. During this time, it wakes every five to seven days to feed from the storage chambers. They are usually solitary animals.[9]
The adults reach sexual maturity when they are about 43 days old and breed from early April to August. The gestation period is 18–20 days and the size of the litter ranges from three to 15 young, which are weaned when aged three weeks.
It is typically found in low-lying farmland with soft loam or loess soils, although it may also inhabit meadows, gardens or hedges. It is found from Belgium and Alsace in the west, to Russia in the east, and Bulgaria in the south. A significant population is found in Vienna's Central Cemetery in Austria.
The Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Union's highest court, ruled in 2011 that France had failed to protect the European hamster.[11] The government would be subject to fines of up to $24.6 million if France did not adjust its agricultural and urbanisation policies sufficiently to protect it.[12] By 2014, France had started a captive-breeding programme, which aimed to release 500 European hamsters each year into fields that farmers were paid not to harvest.[13]
In 2020, the European hamster was classified as critically endangered across its global range on the IUCN Red List. The reasons for its drastic decline are not fully understood. It has been linked especially to habitat loss due to intensive agricultural practices and the building of roads that fragment populations, and to climate change, the historical fur trapping and to pollution; even light pollution appears to significantly reduce local populations, unless counterbalanced by other factors. Agriculture, development, and persecution are thought to be the biggest threats to the species.[1]
A significant benefit to existing conservation programs is that the European hamster breeds readily in captivity; captive breeding programs for the species exist in Belgium, France, Germany, Poland, Ukraine and elsewhere.[14]
The European hamster (Cricetus cricetus), also known as the Eurasian hamster, black-bellied hamster or common hamster, is the only species of hamster in the genus Cricetus. It is native to grassland and similar habitats in a large part of Eurasia, extending from Belgium to the Altai Mountains and Yenisey River in Russia. Historically, it was considered a farmland pest and had been trapped for its fur. Its population has declined drastically in recent years and is now considered critically endangered. The main threats to the species are thought to be intensive agriculture, habitat destruction, and persecution by farmers.
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