Dipodoidea is a superfamily of rodents, also known as dipodoids, found across the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

. This superfamily includes over 50 species among the 16 genera in 3 families. They include the jerboas (family

Dipodidae Jerboas () are the members of the family Dipodidae. They are hopping desert rodents found throughout North Africa and Asia. They tend to live in hot deserts. When chased, jerboas can run at up to . Some species are preyed on by little owls ('' ...

), jumping mice (family Zapodidae), and birch mice (family

Sminthidae Sminthidae is a family of mouse-like jumping rodents. They are represented by only one extant genus, '' Sicista'', represented by 19 species found throughout most of Eurasia, from central Europe east to Siberia, and south to southern China. How ...

). Different species are found in

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

deserts A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the l ...

, and forests. They are all capable of saltation (jumping while in a bipedal stance), a feature that is most highly evolved in the desert-dwelling jerboas.

Taxonomy

Formerly, Dipodoidea contained only a single large family,

, which contained jerboas, jumping mice, and birch mice as subfamilies. However, phylogenetic evidence found all three to be distinct families from one another, and thus they were split into three different families within Dipodoidea.

Characteristics

Dipodoids are small to medium-sized rodents, ranging from in body length, excluding the

tail The tail is the elongated section at the rear end of a bilaterian animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage extending backwards from the midline of the torso. In vertebrate animals that evolution, evolved to los ...

. They are all adapted for jumping, although to varying degrees. The jerboas have very long hind legs which, in most species, include cannon bones. They move either by jumping, or by walking on their hind legs. The jumping mice have long feet, but lack the extreme adaptations of the jerboas, so that they move by crawling or making short hops, rather than long leaps. Both jerboas and jumping mice have long tails to aid their balance. Birch mice have shorter tails and feet, but they, too, move by jumping. Most dipodoids are

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, with a diet consisting of seeds and

insects Insects (from Latin ') are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed ...

. Some species of jerboa, however, such as '' Allactaga sibirica'', are almost entirely insectivorous. Like other rodents, they have gnawing

incisors Incisors (from Latin ''incidere'', "to cut") are the front teeth present in most mammals. They are located in the premaxilla above and on the mandible below. Humans have a total of eight (two on each side, top and bottom). Opossums have 18, wher ...

separated from the grinding cheek teeth by a gap, or diastema. The dental formula for dipodids is: Jerboas and birch mice make their nests in burrows, which, in the case of jerboas, may be complex, with side-chambers for storage of food. In contrast, while jumping mice sometimes co-opt the burrows of other species, they do not dig their own, and generally nest in thick vegetation. Most species hibernate for at least half the year, surviving on fat that they build up in the weeks prior to going to sleep. Dipodoids give birth to litters of between two and seven young after a

gestation Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during pregn ...

period of between 17 and 42 days. They breed once or twice a year, depending on the species.

Classification

Extant species

Superfamily Dipodoidea * Family

** Genus ''

Sicista Birch mice (genus ''Sicista'') are small jumping rodents that resemble mice with long, tufted tails and very long hind legs, allowing for remarkable leaps. They are the only extant members of the family Sminthidae. They are native to Eurasian for ...

'', birch mice *** Armenian birch mouse ''Sicista armenica'' *** Northern birch mouse, ''Sicista betulina'' *** Caucasian birch mouse, ''Sicista caucasica'' ***

Long-tailed birch mouse The long-tailed birch mouse (''Sicista caudata'') is a species of birch mouse found in Northeast Asia. It has been reported from the Ussuri region of Manchuria, Sakhalin Island and Primorsky Krai in Russia, and northern North Korea. It is ...

, ''Sicista caudata'' *** Tsimlyansk birch mouse, ''Sicista cimlanica'' *** Chinese birch mouse, ''Sicista concolor'' *** Kazbeg birch mouse, ''Sicista kazbegica'' *** Kluchor birch mouse, ''Sicista kluchorica'' *** Nordmann's birch mouse, ''Sicistica loriger'' *** Altai birch mouse, ''Sicista napaea'' *** Gray birch mouse, ''Sicista pseudonapaea'' *** Severtzov's birch mouse, ''Sicista severtzovi'' *** Strand's birch mouse, ''Sicista strandi'' ***

Southern birch mouse The southern birch mouse (''Sicista subtilis'') is a species of birch mouse in the family Sminthidae. It is native to southern Russia, Kazakhstan, and potentially northern Mongolia and China. Taxonomy The Hungarian birch mouse (''S. trizona'' ...

, ''Sicista subtilis'' *** Talgar birch mouse, ''Sicista talgarica'' *** Terskey birch mouse, ''Sicista terskeica'' ***

Tien Shan birch mouse The Tien Shan birch mouse (''Sicista tianshanica'') is a species of rodent in the family Sminthidae. It is found in China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Description The Tien Shan birch mouse grows to a length of about with a tail length of about o ...

, ''Sicista tianshanica'' *** Hungarian birch mouse, ''Sicista trizona'' *** Zhetysu birch mouse, ''Sicista zhetysuica'' * Family Zapodidae, jumping mice Woodland_jumping_mouse

** Genus '' Eozapus'' *** Chinese jumping mouse, ''Eozapus setchuanus'' ** Genus '' Napaeozapus'' *** Western woodland jumping mouse, ''Napaeozapus abietorum'' *** Eastern woodland jumping mouse, ''Napaeozapus insignis'' ** Genus '' Zapus'' *** Northern meadow jumping mouse, ''Zapus hudsonius'' *** Southern meadow jumping mouse, ''Zapus luteus'' *** Central Pacific jumping mouse, ''Zapus montanus'' *** Oregon jumping mouse, ''Zapus oregonus'' *** South Pacific jumping mouse, ''Zapus pacificus'' *** Southwestern jumping mouse, ''Zapus princeps'' *** Northwestern jumping mouse, ''Zapus saltator'' *** North Pacific jumping mouse, ''Zapus trinotatus'' * Family

, jerboas ** Subfamily Allactaginae *** Genus '' Allactaga'' **** Subgenus '' Allactaga'' ***** Small five-toed jerboa, ''Allactaga elater'' ***** Iranian jerboa, ''Allactaga firouzi'' ***** Hotson's jerboa, ''Allactaga hotsoni'' ***** Great jerboa, ''Allactaga major'' ***** Severtzov's jerboa, ''Allactaga severtzovi'' ***** Vinogradov's jerboa, ''Allactaga vinogradovi'' **** Subgenus '' Orientallactaga'' ***** Balikun jerboa, ''Allactaga balikunica'' ***** Gobi jerboa, ''Allactaga bullata'' ***** Mongolian five-toed jerboa, ''Allactaga sibirica'' **** Subgenus '' Paralactaga'' ***** Euphrates jerboa, ''Allactaga euphraticus'' ***** Williams' jerboa, ''Allactaga williamsi'' **** ''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'' ***** '' Allactaga toussi'' *** Genus '' Scarturus'' ***** Four-toed jerboa, ''Allactaga tetradactylus'' *** Genus '' Allactodipus'' **** Bobrinski's jerboa, ''Allactodipus bobrinskii'' *** Genus '' Pygeretmus'', fat-tailed jerboas **** Lesser fat-tailed jerboa, ''Pygeretmus platyurus'' **** Dwarf fat-tailed jerboa, ''Pygeretmus pumilio'' **** Greater fat-tailed jerboa, ''Pygeretmus shitkovi'' ** Subfamily Cardiocraniinae *** Genus '' Cardiocranius'' **** Five-toed pygmy jerboa, ''Cardiocranius paradoxus'' *** Genus '' Salpingotulus'' **** Baluchistan pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotulus michaelis'' *** Genus '' Salpingotus'', pygmy jerboas **** Subgenus '' Anguistodontus'' ***** Thick-tailed pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotus crassicauda'' **** Subgenus '' Prosalpingotus'' ***** Heptner's pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotus heptneri'' ***** Pale pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotus pallidus'' ***** Thomas's pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotus thomasi'' **** Subgenus '' Salpingotus'' ***** Kozlov's pygmy jerboa, ''Salpingotus kozlovi'' ** Subfamily Dipodinae *** Tribe Dipodini **** Genus '' Dipus'' ***** Northern three-toed jerboa, ''Dipus sagitta'' **** Genus '' Eremodipus'' ***** Lichtenstein's jerboa, ''Eremodipus lichtensteini'' **** Genus '' Jaculus'' ***** Blanford's jerboa, ''Jaculus blanfordi'' ***** Lesser Egyptian jerboa, ''Jaculus jaculus'' ***** Greater Egyptian jerboa, ''Jaculus orientalis'' ***** Thaler's jerboa, ''Jaculus thaleri'' **** Genus '' Stylodipus'', three-toed jerboas ***** Andrews's three-toed jerboa, ''Stylodipus andrewsi'' ***** Mongolian three-toed jerboa, ''Stylodipus sungorus'' ***** Thick-tailed three-toed jerboa, ''Stylodipus telum'' *** Tribe Paradipodini **** Genus '' Paradipus'' ***** Comb-toed jerboa, ''Paradipus ctenodactylus'' ** Subfamily Euchoreutinae *** Genus '' Euchoreutes'', long-eared ''jerboa'' **** Long-eared jerboa'', Euchoreutes naso''

Fossil genera

Dipodoidea has a well-documented fossil record dating back to the

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

. These fossil species are definitively known: * Genus †'' Aksyiromys'' * Genus †'' Elymys'' * Genus †'' Primisminthus'' * Family † Simimyidae ** Genus †'' Simimys'' * Genus †'' Simiacritomys'' '' Primisminthus'' from the middle Eocene of China could be the oldest member of the group, while '' Banyuesminthus'', also from the middle Eocene of China, could represent a

sister group In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

to the rest of the Dipodoidea.

References

* {{Authority control Dipodoid rodents Myomorpha Rodent taxonomy Mammal superfamilies Extant Eocene first appearances Taxa named by Gotthelf Fischer von Waldheim