Great gerbil
Rhombomys opimus (Lichtenstein, 1823)
The great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus) is a species in the family Muridae, order Rodentia. Recorded adults weigh 144 g to 214 g and live up to 4 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the great gerbil
- Weight
- 144 g – 214 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 4 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 4.5 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Gestation
- 28 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 3.48 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 2.5src for Litters or clutches a year
- Active
- By day (diurnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the great gerbil live?
Not recorded
What is the great gerbil?
The great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus) is a large rodent found throughout much of Central Asia.
From the Wikipedia article “Great gerbil” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Great_gerbil&oldid=1344744153), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the great gerbil endangered?
The great gerbil is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the great gerbil classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderRodentia
- familyMuridae
- genusRhombomys
- SpeciesRhombomys opimus (Lichtenstein, 1823)
Synonyms Gerbillus giganteus, Gerbillus opimus, Gerbillus opimus dalversinicus, Gerbillus opimus nigrescens, Meriones opimus, Rhombomys opimus alaschanicus, Rhombomys opimus fumicolor, Rhombomys opimus major, Rhombomys opimus minor, Rhombomys opimus pevzovi, Rhombomys opimus sargadensis, Rhombomys opimus sodalis, Rhombomys opimus sodalist, Rhombomys pallidus
Other names and names in other languages (19)
- pískomil velkýCzech
- Große RennmausGerman
- Μεγάλος ΓέρβιλοςGreek
- Gran JerboSpanish
- isogerbiiliFinnish
- Grande gerbilleFrench
- Grande gerbilloItalian
- オオスナネズミJapanese
- МайтышқанKazakh
- 큰저빌Korean
- Morin ChichuulMongolian
- Morin TsötsuulMongolian
- KjempegerbilNorwegian Bokmål
- Stor ØrkenrotteNorwegian Bokmål
- Grote RenmuisDutch
- Pieszczanka wielkaPolish
- myszoskoczek wielkiPolish
- Gerbil-GigantePortuguese
- Большая песчанкаRussian
Relatives of the great gerbil
Other species in the same family Muridae.
House mouse
Mus musculus
Brown rat
Rattus norvegicus
Black rat
Rattus rattus
Wood mouse
Apodemus sylvaticus
Eurasian harvest mouse
Micromys minutus
Yellow-necked mouse
Apodemus flavicollis
CompareGreat gerbil vs House mouseGreat gerbil vs Brown ratGreat gerbil vs Black ratGreat gerbil vs Wood mouse
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the great gerbil?
An adult great gerbil weighs 144 g – 214 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the great gerbil endangered?
The great gerbil is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the great gerbil live?
The great gerbil has a recorded lifespan of 4 years.
How long is the great gerbil pregnant?
The recorded gestation period is 28 days.
What kind of animal is the great gerbil?
The great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus) belongs to the family Muridae in the order Rodentia.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-gerbil
“Great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-gerbil.
@misc{great_gerbil_2026,
title = {Great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-gerbil},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}