Fat sand rat Psammomys obesus Least concern
Where the fat sand rat lives – recorded in 3 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.
Pin and shaded countries are approximate. The pin is a representative wild sighting (a central record among 79 open-licence GBIF records), not an official range. Method · Records on GBIF · See mice, rats & other rodents on the world map
| Scientific name | Psammomys obesus |
|---|---|
| Group | Mice, rats & other rodents |
| Status | Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label) |
| Found in | 3 countries |
| Continents | Africa, Asia |
| Class | Mammal |
| Order | Rodentia |
| Family | Muridae |
Where does the fat sand rat live?
Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the fat sand rat in 3 countries and territories across Africa and Asia.
Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.
Is the fat sand rat endangered?
The fat sand rat’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.
What kind of animal is the fat sand rat?
The fat sand rat (Psammomys obesus) is a mammal in the order Rodentia and the family Muridae, genus Psammomys. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)
About the fat sand rat
The fat sand rat (Psammomys obesus) is a terrestrial mammal from the gerbil subfamily that is mostly found in North Africa and the Middle East, ranging from Mauritania to the Arabian Peninsula. This species usually lives in sandy deserts, but may also be found in rocky terrain or saline marsh areas. Fat sand rats are very selective in their diet, only eating stems and leaves of plants from the family Amaranthaceae, more commonly known as the amaranth family. In captivity, fat sand rats can become obese and rapidly develop diabetes-like symptoms when fed the diet typically given to other rodents. P. obesus has an average lifespan of 14 months in the wild and 3–4 years in captivity.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Fat sand rat (revision 1377845650), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q1409213 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).
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