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The Djungarian hamster (''Phodopus sungorus''), also known as the Siberian hamster, Siberian dwarf hamster or Russian winter white dwarf hamster, is one of three species of hamster in the genus ''Phodopus''. It is ball-shaped and typically half the size of the Syrian hamster, and therefore called a dwarf hamster along with all ''Phodopus'' species. Features of the Djungarian hamster include a typically thick, dark grey dorsal stripe and furry feet. As winter approaches and the days shorten, the Djungarian hamster's dark fur is almost entirely replaced with white fur. In captivity, this does not always happen. In the wild, they originate from Dzungaria, the wheat fields of Kazakhstan, the meadows of Mongolia, Siberia, and the birch stands of Manchuria. Djungarian hamsters are common as pets in Europe and North America, and exhibit greater variance in their coats than those found in the wild. They reproduce often—more so than Syrian hamsters—and, as they have no fixed breeding season, can continue to produce large amounts of offspring all year round. Young pups will act aggressively to one another; whilst breeding females may show similar aggression to males. ==Physical description== The coat of the Djungarian hamster is less woolly than that of the Campbell's dwarf hamster,〔 and apart from the normal colouring, they can be coloured sapphire, sapphire pearl, or normal pearl. The head length of the Djungarian hamster is 70 to 90 millimetres in length, the length of the tail is five to 15 millimetres, and the hind legs are 11 to 15 millimetres.〔Winogradow und Argiropulo 1941. Zitiert in: Ross 1998 (S. 1, „General Characters“)〕〔Krylzow und Schubin 1964. Zitiert in: Ross 1998 (S. 1, „General Characters“).〕 The body weight changes dramatically throughout the year. It is at its lowest during the winter months.〔Bartness & Wade, 1985. Photoperiodic control of seasonal body weight cycles in hamsters (Abstract)〕 In males, the body weight ranges from to , and in females, to .〔 In human care, they are slightly heavier. The average lifespan of the Djungarian hamster is one to three years of age in captivity, though they can live longer. In the wild, they are known to live as little as one year.〔The Dwarf Hamster: A Guide to Selection, Housing, Care, Nutrition, Behaviour, Health, Breeding, Species and Colours (About Pets) ISBN 978-1-85279-210-7〕 In summer, the fur of the Djungarian hamster on the back changes from ash-grey to dark brown, or sometimes pale brown with a tint.〔How to Care for Your Dwarf Hamster (Your first...series) ISBN 1-85279-150-0〕 The face changes to grey or brown, while the mouth area, the whisker area and the ears are slightly brighter.〔Figala und Mitarbeiter 1973 (Abstract). Die Angaben beziehen sich auf unter natürlichen Bedingungen gehaltene Hamster.〕 The outer ears and the eyes have black edges. The rest of the head is dark brown or black. From the head to the tail runs a black-brown dorsal stripe.〔 Dissertation Quoted in Ross 1998 (p. 1, Diagnosis, General Characters "〕 The throat, belly, tail and limbs are white.〔 The ears are grey with a pinkish tint〔 with scattered black hairs. The hairs on the underside are completely white.〔 Quoted in Ross 1998 (p. 1, "Context and Content" of the genre, "Diagnosis "〕 The bright coat the bottom extends to the shoulders, flanks and hips in three arches upward. It is distinguished from the darker fur on the top of the existing black-brown hair, three curved line.〔 Apart from the typical colouration, Djungarian hamsters can also be coloured pearl, sapphire, sapphire pearl and marbled. Other colorations are available, but these are strongly suspected to appear only in hybrid crossings with Campbell Dwarf hamsters. Some of these colorations are mandarin, blue, argente, yellow blue fawn, camel, brown, cream, merle and umbrous.〔 In the winter, the fur is more dense. They sometimes have a grey tint on their head.〔Pallas 1773rd Quoted in Ross 1998 (p. 1, General Characters ").〕 More than ten percent of the hamsters kept in the first winter develop the summer coat. In the second winter, only a few change into the winter coat and winter colour is less pronounced. The moulting in the winter fur starts in October or November and is completed in December, while the summer coat begins in January or February and is completed in March or early April.〔 The ears are grey with a pinkish tint.〔 Moulting both run jobs on the head and the back of the spine to the sides, the legs and the underside.〔 Quoted in Ross 1998 (p. 1-2, " form ")〕 The hairs grow longer in the summer, to about ten millimetres long.〔 The pigmentation of hair is controlled by the hormone prolactin and colour genetics. Day length must be less than fourteen hours to initiate the change to winter coat. The change to the winter coat can be triggered in the summer by the short day lengths. The change occurs back to the summer coat in the autumn, when the length of the days change again. At internal temperatures hamsters in captivity start later with the changes. The winter colour is less pronounced in them.〔 The eyes of the Djungarian hamster are black, unless it is albino in which case they are red.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Djungarian hamster」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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