Phodopus

Phodopus

 

(dwarf hamsters, desert hamsters, or Asian hamsters), a genus of rodents of the family Cricetidae. The length of the body is up to 10 cm long; the tail measures less than 1 cm. The tail and soles of the feet are densely covered with hair. There are three species. The hamsters are encountered in northwestern China and in the southern deserts and plain and mountain steppes of Western Siberia, Eastern Kazakhstan, and Mongolia. All three species are found in the USSR. The hamsters feed on seeds and insects; they bear up to three litters per year. Phodopus sungorus is used as a laboratory animal.