Friday, August 15, 2014

Creature Feature #300: Hamster

The Hamsters are a group of small rodents characterised by their short tails and elongated cheek pouches. Their behaviour is crepuscular - they remain underground during the day and venture out in the evenings and mornings to forage for seeds, fruit, vegetation and insects. Food is stored in their cheek pouches, which can double, or triple, in size and hoarded in underground food chambers. Hamsters lead a solitary lifestyle, although some species will live in pairs. Hamsters, particularly the Syrian Hamster, have become popular in the pet industry, and have been bred with unusual colourations and longer fur. They do not tolerate colony living and are most active at night.

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