Der Goldhamster – Mesocricetus auratus

Magdeburg 2021, SC., 480 pages, colour and b/w illustrations. Following the species’ description in 1839, it took nearly a 100 years for scientists to find the first live golden hamsters in the steppes of northern Syria in 1930. Once a breeding group of three males and one female excavated from their underground den was established, these beady-eyed rodent rascals quickly conquered the world and children’s rooms in the US and Europe. The golden hamster has also established itself as a popular laboratory animal, not least due to its short gestation period of only 16 days. In addition to providing interesting details about discovery, the book presents noteworthy facts about morphology, distribution, domestication and behavior of these little furry animals. In German.