''Spermophilus brevicauda'' (Brandt’s ground squirrel) is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are roden ...

in the family

Sciuridae Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. ...

. It is found in eastern

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental coun ...

and the northern half of the

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

region of China. A generic revision of the genus was undertaken in 2007 which helped resolve the uncertainty as to whether this species should be considered a subspecies of '' Spermophilus erythrogenys''. A phylogeny based on molecular sequence data determined that ''S. brevicauda'' was indeed a separate species from ''S. erythrogenys'', and from the other similar species in the genus, ''S. pallidicauda'' and ''S. alashanicus''.

Distribution

Brandt's ground squirrel is found from the

Lake Zaysan Lake Zaysan (, ''Zaısan kóli'', زايسان كؤلئ, ; , ''Zaisan nuur'', en: ''Noble lake''; , ''Ozero Zajsan''; , Xiao'erjing: جَىْصْا پْ; dng, Җэсонпә) is a freshwater lake, ca. 1,810 km² (700 mi²), in eastern ...

region in eastern Kazakhstan, southwards and westwards along the

Tian Shan The Tian Shan,, , otk, 𐰴𐰣 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃, , tr, Tanrı Dağı, mn, Тэнгэр уул, , ug, تەڭرىتاغ, , , kk, Тәңіртауы / Алатау, , , ky, Теңир-Тоо / Ала-Тоо, , , uz, Tyan-Shan / Tangritog‘ ...

mountain range to the vicinity of

Almaty Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to 1936 as an autonomous republic as part of ...

, on both sides of the Kazakh-Chinese border. The closely related species, '' Spermophilus alashanicus'' from the Alashan Desert and ''

Spermophilus pallidicauda The pallid ground squirrel (''Spermophilus pallidicauda'') is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is found in Mongolia and the adjacent Nei Mongol autonomous region. A generic revision of the genus was undertaken in 2007 which helped ...

'', found in north east Gansu and

Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Its border includes most of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for ...

, are

allopatric Allopatric speciation () – also referred to as geographic speciation, vicariant speciation, or its earlier name the dumbbell model – is a mode of speciation that occurs when biological populations become geographically isolated from ...

in distribution, separated as they are by geographic boundaries.A Guide to the Mammals of China
/ref>

Description

Brandt's ground squirrel is smaller than most other ''Spermophilus'' species being 165 to 210 millimetres long with a short tail some 30 to 50 millimetres long and weighing up to 440 grams. It is an ochre brown colour with distinctive lighter coloured spots. The hind feet are

russet Russet may refer to: * Russet (cloth), a coarse woolen cloth of brown or grey colour *Russet (color), a dark reddish brown color *Russeting, reddish-brown and coarse anomaly of fruit skin **Russet apple **Russet potato A russet potato is a type ...

as is the tail, though in some parts of the range the tail is yellowish. There are paler regions around the eyes with rust coloured patches above and below.

Biology

This species is found in dry steppes and semi-desert brushlands. It lives either communally or singly in burrows where it hibernates in winter and aestivates in excessive summer heat. The entrance to the burrow is often found at the base of a bush. The diet is primarily vegetarian consisting of seasonal plant growthSmith, A.T. and Johnston, C.H. 2008. Spermophilus brevicauda including young shoots of certain shrubs, bulbs and tubers. Unlike some other related species, Brandt's ground squirrel seldom stands erect on its two hind legs and its alarm cry is a quiet squeak.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1765678 Brevicauda Mammals described in 1843