Libyan Jird colony – Khafra Marsh

I set off from home at 03:50 in early May to get to Jubail for first light. By 05:00 just as it was getting light, but there was little activity in the area I had seen them previously. I just saw one Jird run very fast and down a burrow and then nothing more for half an hour. I then decided to look further down the road to see if I could see any activity and saw a single Cheesman’s Gerbil, running around under a small bush. This was the first time I have seen this species, but it stayed in the cover and I was unable to get any photos of it. In Saudi Arabia they are common in the desert. Later I did manage to see a large number of Libyan Jird Meriones libycus with the animals habituated to the noise of the passing vehicles but depart rapidly when they hear any other unusual sound. I stayed a couple of hours looking at and photographing the animals and a couple were so close I could not focus the camera on them. As previously I saw a few animals with the tips of their tails missing. The Libyan Jird is one of the most widely distributed species among rodents, ranging across nearly the entire Palearctic Desert belt from Morocco in Northwest Africa to China. It occupies desert and semi‐desert habitats, generally in areas with stabilized dunes. It becomes most abundant in unflooded river plains, and it is often found close to wadies and occasionally in arable land. Fifteen subspecies were described but their validity and the phylogenetic relationships among them are uncertain. A recent study defined subspecies limits within Meriones libycus into three allopatric lineages within M. libycus: Western lineage in North Africa, Central lineage in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria, and Eastern lineage in Iran, Afghanistan, and China. The results support the existence of at least three subspecies within the libyan jird: African Meriones libycus libycus, Levant-Arabian M. l. syrius, and Eastern Meriones libycus erythrourus.

Libyan Jirds – Khafra Marsh

The whole family left home at 04:30 to go to Khafra Marsh to see Libyan Jird. This site has proved to be very good for getting close views of the animals and we all hoped for some luck. We noticed the first Jirds on the compact sand near the side of the road where a number of burrows were located. The animals stayed close to their burrows and would disappear down them at the first sign of danger. Once the temperature started to get too hot, around 07:00 the Jirds started to disappear down their burrows for good. The underground burrow system of these animals is extensive and often they would go down one hole and reappear shortly after some distance away out of another burrow. The Libyan Jird is one of the most widely distributed species among rodents, ranging across nearly the entire Palearctic Desert Belt from Morocco in Northwest Africa to China. It occupies desert and semi‐desert habitats, generally in areas with stabilized dunes. The subspecies in Saudi Arabia is the Central lineage that also occurs in Jordan and Syria Meriones libycus syrius. 

Libyan Jirds – Khafra Marsh

I left home at 04:00 to go to Khafra Marsh to a site I have seen Libyan Jird at previously. As soon as I reached the location, I noticed the first Jirds on the compact sand near the side of the road where I had seen them before. I stayed looking at the Jirds for an hour or so and during this time the light became better for photographs. Once the temperature started to get too hot, around 07:00 the Jirds started to disappear down their burrows. The underground burrow system of these animals is extensive and often they would go down one hole and reappear shortly after some distance away out of another burrow. The Libyan Jird is one of the most widely distributed species among rodents, ranging across nearly the entire Palearctic Desert Belt from Morocco in Northwest Africa to China. It occupies desert and semi‐desert habitats, generally in areas with stabilized dunes. The subspecies in Saudi Arabia is the Central lineage that also occurs in Jordan and Syria Meriones libycus syrius.

Libyan Jirds – Khafra Marsh

As my daughters are back in Saudi Arabia for the summer school holidays and one wanted to see the Libyan Jirds I had seen earlier in the year. As a result, we set off from home at 03:45 in late August to get to Jubail for first light. By 05:15 just as it was getting light, we noticed the first Jirds on the side of the road where I had seen them before. The sun was not up, but as the animals were very close photography was possible. We stayed looking at the Jirds for a couple of hours and during this time the light became better and better photographs could be taken. Once the temperature started to get too hot, around 07:00 the jirds started to disappeare down their burrows. The underground burrow system of these animals is extensive and often they would go down one hole and reappear hortly after some distance away out of another burrow. The climate of Saudi Arabia is characteristically harsh with rainfall being sporadic and unpredictable and temperatures often climbing well above 40 °C. Under such conditions food resources and water are scarce, yet many small mammals can survive and reproduce, one of the most successful being the Libyan Jird Meriones libycus. The Libyan Jird is one of the most widely distributed species among rodents, ranging across nearly the entire Palearctic Desert Belt from Morocco in Northwest Africa to China. It occupies desert and semi‐desert habitats, generally in areas with stabilized dunes. It becomes most abundant in unflooded river plains, and it is often found close to wadies and occasionally in arable land. A recent study defined subspecies limits within Meriones libycus into three allopatric lineages within M. libycus: Western lineage in North Africa Meriones libycus libycus, Central lineage in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria M. l. syrius, and Eastern lineage in Iran, Afghanistan, and China Meriones libycus erythrourus.