User:Kdawg7/Jerboa

ADW: Dipodidae, birch mice, jerboa, and jumping mice
Anatomy & Body features:


 * "Jumping mice are well equipped for jumping with long hind feet to propel them off the ground and a long tail that helps them maintain balance while airborne"
 * "They have hind limbs that are at least four times as long as their front legs, and the foot bones are often fused into a single long cannon bone, which gives the animal greater leverage for jumping."
 * "Jerboas that live in sandy areas have fur on the undersides of their feet, which gives the animal greater traction on the loose sand."

Diet:


 * "Jerboas are nocturnal and feed on insects, seeds, and succulent vegetation."
 * "The front limbs are not used for locomotion; instead, they are employed in the gathering of food and for burrowing."

The Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Neurosecretory System of the Jerboa (Jaculus orientalis) and its Seasonal Variations
Behavior:


 * "To survive the harsh winter conditions, jerboas hibernate in their natural burrows, and they exhibit this same behaviour in laboratory conditions following food deprivation or exposure to cold temperatures"

Reproduction:


 * "The breeding season extends from March to July when the climatic and food conditions become favourable.
 * "In the autumn, jerboas become sexually refractory" (AKA celibate)
 * "The distribution of cells expressing gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) immunoreactivity was examined in the brain of adult jerboa during two distinct periods of the reproductive cycle. During spring-summer, when the jerboa is sexually active."

BURROW SYSTEMS OF IRANIAN JERBOA
Behavior:


 * "In addition to providing protection against predators and the weather extremes, burrow  systems  have  other  functions,  such  as  raising  offspring and  gaining  access  to  high-quality  feeding  sites  through  numerous  entrance  holes."
 * "burrow system in winter burrow had a larger surface area and were deeper"
 * winter burrows are typically longer, deeper, and have more entrance holes.

How the jerboa got its enormous feet
- One gene isn’t responsible for the Jerboas feet; it is a network of many genes that give them their large feet.

- The team identified a gene called shox2, for example, that is expressed in the jerboa feet, but not in mouse feet. Shox2 makes a transcription factor, a protein that dictates what other genes are turned on or that specifies what part of a gene’s DNA is actually made into protein. Transcription factors can have huge cascading effects that change whole networks of genes, and shox2 has previously been shown in humans to be associated with diseases such as Turner syndrome, which causes short stature and disproportionate limbs.

The evolution of bipedalism in Jerboas
- Jerboas have a cannon bone in their hind feet; because they strictly hop on their hind legs, this bone aids in supporting the legs.

- The cannon bone in Jerboas is more distinct than in other small rodents.

- Jerboa dental records show a slow increase in their crown heights which corresponds with open and dryer ecosystems.

Jerboa Factsheet: Behavior and Diet
- Behavior:


 * Jerboas can hop 10-13cm normally, when being chased they jump further up to 3m.
 * Since they are dessert animals, they must adapt to their hot surroundings. Jerboas burrow underneath the sand in desserts to keep cool in the summer and warmer in the winter. Winter burrows range up to 3 meters deep.
 * Jerboas litter sizes are small and range from 2-6 offspring per liter. Jerboas reproduce twice a year.
 * Jerboas can dig fast by using their shorter arms to dig and their legs to push the sand behind them.
 * Adaptive to their environment; having skin folds and hair that protect their ears and noses from getting sand inside.

- Diet:


 * Eat desert plants; best when wet after raining but when dried up Jerboas dig the plants roots up to eat because they hold more water and some bugs.
 * Jerboas get their water intake from food and do not it.
 * Jerboas minimize water and energy loss by feeding at night during the summer and hibernating during the winter.