GERBIL

also called Sand Rat, any of the numerous burrowing rodents forming the subfamily Gerbillinae of the family Cricetidae. There are about a dozen genera and almost 100 species. Gerbils are found in Africa and Asia, generally in dry, sandy areas, though some live in grasslands, cultivated fields, or forests. Mouselike or ratlike animals, they have large eyes and ears and soft, pale brown or grayish fur. Most gerbils are 1015 cm (46 inches) long excluding the tail, which is usually long, hairy, and tufted at the tip. Many species have long hind legs and leap about like jerboas. Gerbils feed primarily on seeds, roots, and other plant material. Some species are active by day, others by night. Burrow systems vary; some gerbils, such as those of the African and western Asian genus Gerbillus, dig short, relatively uncomplicated burrows, while others, such as the great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus) of Russia, dig elaborate underground tunnel systems. Meriones unguiculatus, one of the tamarisk gerbils, or jirds, is a gentle and hardy animal that became a popular pet in the United States in the mid-1960s. The great gerbil sometimes damages crops and embankments in the U.S.S.R. Members of the African genus Tatera are possible carriers of bubonic plague.