Mesocricetus
Genus of Old World hamsters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mesocricetus is a genus of Old World hamsters, including the Syrian or golden hamster, the first hamster to be introduced as a domestic pet, and still the most popular species of hamster for that purpose.
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| Mesocricetus Temporal range: Early Pliocene - Recent | |
|---|---|
| |
| Mesocricetus auratus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Cricetinae |
| Genus: | Mesocricetus Nehring, 1894 |
| Type species | |
| Cricetus nigricans[1] | |
| Species | |
|
Mesocricetus auratus | |
Recent research has shown that, unlike almost all other land mammals studied, all species of this genus lack the capacity for color vision.[2]
Species
- Mesocricetus auratus Golden hamster or Syrian hamster
- Mesocricetus brandti Turkish hamster or Brandt's hamster
- Mesocricetus newtoni Romanian hamster or Dobrudja hamster
- Mesocricetus raddei Ciscaucasian hamster
- †Mesocricetus rathgeberi Armathia hamster (extinct, known from subfossil bones from Armathia Island, Greece)[3]
