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Description
Mountain dormouse, chinchilla-dormouse (Raptoglis chinchilloides)
Order: Rodents (Rodentia)
Family: Dormouses (Gliridae)
Habitat: mountains of the Caucasian peninsula, Middle East.
In early neocene rodents have an opportunity to prove once again the evolutionary success. They quickly evolved, taking all suitable habitats for them, and already in early neocene their specific variety was comparable with that in a pliocene and an early pleistocene, before the age of anthropogenous pressure. In the neocene rodents are widespread on all Earth, except Antarctica – from the equatorial woods to cold northern meadows and tops of mountains.
In Eurasia in the neocene there were some species of dormouses family which use food of an animal extraction much more often than their ancestors. These are the sable dormouse (Raptoglis zibellinus) from Three-Rivers steppes and the otter-dormouse (Glirolutra hamiota) from the rivers of east part of Europe. One more species is close to them, lives to the south of Fourseas, in mountains of the Caucasian peninsula and mountains of the Middle East, is the mountain dormouse called also the chinchilla-dormouse for the dense warm fur. This representative of northern fauna prospers in the south exactly thanks to dwelling in cold highland climate.
The mountain dormouse – the large rodent reaching weight about 3 kilograms and of the size of a small cat. Thanks to a tail covered with long wool, the animal seems more largely. The head of this rodent is rounded, with the shortened muzzle and the small ear conches covered outside with wool. The mountain dormouse has large eyes and good sight.
This species successfully mastered life in highlands thanks to dense fur which helps to keep heat even in a hard frost or at big height. Summer fur of an animal is reddish-brown, velvety, rather short. On a breast and a throat there is always a white spot, head top is more dark. The winter fur differs by the bigger length and density, and also lighter coloring.
Constitution of an animal is tight, paws are short (hinder legs are a little longer than forelegs). Fingers are armed with sharp claws thanks to what the mountain dormouse is capable to climb on almost steep mountainsides and among a bush. This animal can make jumps up to 2 - 3 meters long.
Mountain dormouses are almost exceptionally carnivorous, adding to a diet no more than 10% of vegetable food though in case of starvation they can temporarily turn to completely vegetable forage. These rodents often eat drop for which search by a smell. Besides, mountain dormouses readily gnaw even bones. For them is characteristic the habit to search and pull down bones in "bonemill", a special place covered from predators where these animals gnaw their finds. They almost completely assimilate collagen from the eaten bones, and the remains are small. Usual the prey of mountain dormouses are small rodents, birds and their eggs, and in lowlands – reptiles and insects.
This species of rodents lives singly and rarely – in couples. The female is more aggressive than the male. The dwelling of this rodent represents the deep hole which has been dug out among stones so that they complicated digging the hole out by predators.
Like other representatives of family, mountain dormouses lay down in long hibernation which can last up to half a year with small breaks. Animals are very strongly eaten off to the winter, gaining weight about 4,5 kg. The fur becomes long and more dense. Several times during the winter the animal wakes up to leave the dung, which is at this time very condensed and dry.
The posterity is born at the end of spring when there is a lot of forage. In a brood are to 5 cubs who quickly grow and at the age of about two weeks already start tasting meat. Occasionally at the end of summer animals can bring the second brood in which there are rarely more than two cubs. Life expectancy doesn't exceed 5 years.

Description
Mountain dormouse, chinchilla-dormouse (Raptoglis chinchilloides)
Order: Rodents (Rodentia)
Family: Dormouses (Gliridae)
Habitat: mountains of the Caucasian peninsula, Middle East.
In early neocene rodents have an opportunity to prove once again the evolutionary success. They quickly evolved, taking all suitable habitats for them, and already in early neocene their specific variety was comparable with that in a pliocene and an early pleistocene, before the age of anthropogenous pressure. In the neocene rodents are widespread on all Earth, except Antarctica – from the equatorial woods to cold northern meadows and tops of mountains.
In Eurasia in the neocene there were some species of dormouses family which use food of an animal extraction much more often than their ancestors. These are the sable dormouse (Raptoglis zibellinus) from Three-Rivers steppes and the otter-dormouse (Glirolutra hamiota) from the rivers of east part of Europe. One more species is close to them, lives to the south of Fourseas, in mountains of the Caucasian peninsula and mountains of the Middle East, is the mountain dormouse called also the chinchilla-dormouse for the dense warm fur. This representative of northern fauna prospers in the south exactly thanks to dwelling in cold highland climate.
The mountain dormouse – the large rodent reaching weight about 3 kilograms and of the size of a small cat. Thanks to a tail covered with long wool, the animal seems more largely. The head of this rodent is rounded, with the shortened muzzle and the small ear conches covered outside with wool. The mountain dormouse has large eyes and good sight.
This species successfully mastered life in highlands thanks to dense fur which helps to keep heat even in a hard frost or at big height. Summer fur of an animal is reddish-brown, velvety, rather short. On a breast and a throat there is always a white spot, head top is more dark. The winter fur differs by the bigger length and density, and also lighter coloring.
Constitution of an animal is tight, paws are short (hinder legs are a little longer than forelegs). Fingers are armed with sharp claws thanks to what the mountain dormouse is capable to climb on almost steep mountainsides and among a bush. This animal can make jumps up to 2 - 3 meters long.
Mountain dormouses are almost exceptionally carnivorous, adding to a diet no more than 10% of vegetable food though in case of starvation they can temporarily turn to completely vegetable forage. These rodents often eat drop for which search by a smell. Besides, mountain dormouses readily gnaw even bones. For them is characteristic the habit to search and pull down bones in "bonemill", a special place covered from predators where these animals gnaw their finds. They almost completely assimilate collagen from the eaten bones, and the remains are small. Usual the prey of mountain dormouses are small rodents, birds and their eggs, and in lowlands – reptiles and insects.
This species of rodents lives singly and rarely – in couples. The female is more aggressive than the male. The dwelling of this rodent represents the deep hole which has been dug out among stones so that they complicated digging the hole out by predators.
Like other representatives of family, mountain dormouses lay down in long hibernation which can last up to half a year with small breaks. Animals are very strongly eaten off to the winter, gaining weight about 4,5 kg. The fur becomes long and more dense. Several times during the winter the animal wakes up to leave the dung, which is at this time very condensed and dry.
The posterity is born at the end of spring when there is a lot of forage. In a brood are to 5 cubs who quickly grow and at the age of about two weeks already start tasting meat. Occasionally at the end of summer animals can bring the second brood in which there are rarely more than two cubs. Life expectancy doesn't exceed 5 years.