CreatureData

Mongolian gerbil

Meriones unguiculatus (Milne-Edwards, 1867)

LCLeast Concernrodents

The mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) is a species in the family Muridae, order Rodentia. Recorded adults weigh 53.3 g to 58.1 g and live up to 2 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus)
Photo: Meriones_unguiculatus_1.jpg : Alastair Rae from London, United Kingdom… · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the mongolian gerbil

Weight
53.3 g – 58.1 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
2 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Herbivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
6.3 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
grassland, shrublandsrc for Habitat
Gestation
19 days – 25.1 dayssrc for Gestation
Young per litter or clutch
4 – 6src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
36 days – 56.5 dayssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
3.84src for Litters or clutches a year
Active
Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the mongolian gerbil live?

Not recorded

What is the mongolian gerbil?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The Mongolian gerbil, also referred to as the Mongolian jird (Meriones unguiculatus), is a rodent belonging to the subfamily Gerbillinae. Their body size is typically 110–135 mm (4+1⁄4–5+1⁄4 in), with a 95–120 mm (3+3⁄4–4+3⁄4 in) tail, and body weight 60–130 g (2–4+1⁄2 oz), with adult males larger than females. The animal is used in science for research or kept as a small house pet. Their use in science dates back to the later half of the 19th century, but they only started to be kept as pets in the English-speaking world after 1954, when they were brought to the United States. However, their use in scientific research has declined.

From the Wikipedia article “Mongolian gerbil” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mongolian_gerbil&oldid=1384611370), 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 mongolian gerbil endangered?

The mongolian gerbil is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the mongolian gerbil classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classMammalia
  4. orderRodentia
  5. familyMuridae
  6. genusMeriones
  7. SpeciesMeriones unguiculatus (Milne-Edwards, 1867)

Synonyms Gerbillus koslovi, Gerbillus kozlovi, Gerbillus unguiculatus, Meriones chihfengensis, Meriones koslovi, Meriones kurauchii, Meriones kurauchii chihfengenis, Meriones kurauchii chihfengensis, Pallasiomys unguiculatus selenginus

Other names and names in other languages (29)
  • Clawed jirdEnglish
  • Clawed jirdEnglish
  • Domesticated gerbilEnglish
  • GerbilEnglish
  • Mongolian jirdEnglish
  • Mongolian jirdEnglish
  • pískomil mongolskýCzech
  • ØrkenrotteDanish
  • Mongolische RennratteGerman
  • Mongolische RennmausGerman
  • Gerbil de MongoliaSpanish
  • mongolianjirdiFinnish
  • מריון מונגוליHebrew
  • スナネズミJapanese
  • 몽골저드Korean
  • 몽골저빌Korean
  • Hul ChichuulMongolian
  • MongoljirdNorwegian Bokmål
  • mongolsk ørkenrotteNorwegian Bokmål
  • Mongoolse GerbilDutch
  • Mongoolse renmuisDutch
  • Suwak mongolskiPolish
  • Когтистая песчанкаRussian
  • Монгольская песчанкаRussian
  • Mongol'Skaya PeschankaRussian
  • mongolska puščavska podganaSlovenian
  • Vanlig ökenråttaSwedish
  • Піщанка монгольськаUkrainian
  • 長爪沙鼠Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the mongolian gerbil

Other species in the same genus Meriones.

CompareMongolian gerbil vs Libyan jirdMongolian gerbil vs Sundevall's jirdMongolian gerbil vs Persian jirdMongolian gerbil vs Midday jird

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the mongolian gerbil?

An adult mongolian gerbil weighs 53.3 g – 58.1 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the mongolian gerbil endangered?

The mongolian gerbil is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the mongolian gerbil live?

The mongolian gerbil has a recorded lifespan of 2 years.

How long is the mongolian gerbil pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 19 days – 25.1 days.

What kind of animal is the mongolian gerbil?

The mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) 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.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/mongolian-gerbil

MLA

“Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/mongolian-gerbil.

BibTeX
@misc{mongolian_gerbil_2026,
  title = {Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/mongolian-gerbil},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}