KUWAIT: Many types of rodents from the jerboa family live in Kuwait’s desert areas, specifically in Al-Shaqaya, Jal Al-Zour, Al-Salmi, Sabah Al-Ahmad Nature Reserve, some parts of Ahmadi and the southern regions, but the most prominent of them is the "jumping jerboa” scientifically called (Jacolus).
Deputy Director General for Technical Affairs at the Environment Public Authority Dr Abdullah Al-Zaidan told KUNA Saturday that the jumping jerboa has been spotted in abundance in the country, noting that it is also found in Central Asia, North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and in desert and semi-desert areas that can be sandy or rocky.
Al-Zaidan added that the size of the jumping jerboa ranges from approximately 10 to 25 centimeters and appears only at night when the weather is cooler in the desert. It is a solitary creature that digs burrows in the sand in a spiral opposite to the direction of the wind. Its hands range in depth from one to two meters and can dig side holes that reach the surface to help it escape. He explained that these jerboas block the entrances to their burrows with plants or sand to prevent predators from entering. It also helps it maintain cool and humid conditions and remain asleep in their burrows during the very hot periods in the summer. It has the ability to move long distances of up to ten kilometers in search of food.
He mentioned that the jumping jerboa can also cover vast areas quickly thanks to its large hind feet compared to the rest of its body size and moves in a manner similar to the movement of a kangaroo. It also uses its long tail, which usually ends in a mass of hair for balance and the color of its fur is usually the color of sand, which gives it an important advantage in camouflage.
He stated that it feeds on fresh green leaves and plants that grow in the desert after rainfall, but the dryness and scarcity of plants in these environments makes the jumping jerboa dig in the ground to reach the roots of the plant to eat them. — KUNA
