Urocricetus lama

(Bonhote, 1905)

Ladakh Tibetan Hamster

Taxonomy

Subclass : Theria
Infraclass : Placentalia
Magnorder : Boreoeutheria
Superorder : Euarchontoglires
Order : Rodentia
Suborder : Supramyomorpha
Infraorder : Myomorphi
Superfamily : Muroidea
Family : Cricetidae
Subfamily : Cricetinae
Tribe : Urocricetini
Genus : Urocricetus

Species status

Living
Found in the wild
Listed in MSW3 2005

Authority citation

Bonhote, J.L.J. 1905-11-14. Mr. J. Lewis Bonhote, F.Z.S., communicated a paper on the Mammals brought back by the Tibet Mission. Abstracts of the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 22:14.

Authority publication link

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/31208095

Original name as described

Cricetulus lama

Other common names

Ladakh Hamster · Ladakh Dwarf Hamster · Ladak Tibetan Hamster

Type material

BMNH:Mamm:1905.4.6.4

Type kind

holotype

Type specimen URI

https://data.nhm.ac.uk/object/e4fec6fa-0933-4f15-b70f-c938a32620a0

Type locality

"brought back by the Tibet Mission", Lhasa, Tibet, China.

Biogeographic realm

Palearctic

Country distribution

China · India · Nepal

Taxonomy notes

has been known under the name 'alticola', 'tibetanus', and 'lama', or variously treated as a synonym/subspecies of U. kamensis, but all three names appear to represent the same species with 'lama' being the oldest available name, although further research is needed to fully clarify their taxonomy; moved from Cricetulus to Urocricetus

Taxonomy notes citation

Smith, A. T. & Xie, Y. (2008). A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. · Lebedev, V. S., Bannikova, A. A., Neumann, K., Ushakova, M. V., Ivanova, N. V., & Surov, A. V. (2018). Molecular phylogenetics and taxonomy of dwarf hamsters Cricetulus Milne-Edwards, 1867 (Cricetidae, Rodentia): description of a new genus and reinstatement of another. Zootaxa, 4387(2), 331-349. · Kryštufek, B., & Shenbrot, G. I. (2025). True Hamsters (Cricetinae) of the Palaearctic Region. University of Maribor, University Press, Maribor.

IUCN Red List status

Least Concern

Species Permalink

https://www.mammaldiversity.org/taxon/1002217

Country distribution map

The map below provides a general overview. Most species inhabit only specific regions within countries. Hover over the highlighted regions to see the country name.

Names and synonyms

Present and past (if available) associated names to the species. Click on a name to view its details. If the list is long, scroll down to see more.

Cricetulus lama

(Bonhote, 1905)

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

lama

Validity status

species

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

BMNH:Mamm:1905.4.6.4

Type kind

holotype

Type specimen URI

https://data.nhm.ac.uk/object/e4fec6fa-0933-4f15-b70f-c938a32620a0

Authority page

14

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/31208095

Authority publication

Abstracts of the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London

Name usages

  1. Musser & Carleton (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/8562)
  2. Smith & Xie (2008:243) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/64149)
  3. Mammal Diversity Database (2018:ID #136746) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67336)
  4. International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2024, https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/136746/22391088) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67246)

Cricetulus alticola

(O. Thomas, 1917)

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

alticola

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type

BMNH:Mamm:1906.10.3.13

Type kind

holotype

Type specimen URI

https://data.nhm.ac.uk/object/ab36d30a-fca7-44ab-8eac-f1f9b5bd2c4c

Authority page

455

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15627550

Authority publication

Annals and Magazine of Natural History

Name usages

  1. Thomas (1917:455, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15627550) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/19666)
  2. Corbet & Hill (1980:157) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63069)
  3. Honacki, Kinman & Koeppl (1982:405) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63071)
  4. Corbet & Hill (1991:164) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63070)
  5. Musser & Carleton (1993:537) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/63347)
  6. Musser & Carleton (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/8562)
  7. Smith & Xie (2008:242) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/64149)
  8. Wilson, Mittermeier & Lacher (2017:285) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/57900)
  9. Mammal Diversity Database (2018:ID #5523) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67336)
  10. Mammal Diversity Database (2019:ID #5523) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67337)

Cricetulus alticola tibetanus

(O. Thomas & Hinton, 1922)

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

tibetanus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

available

Type kind

holotype

Authority page

180

Authority page URI

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15689919

Authority publication

Annals and Magazine of Natural History

Name usages

Musser & Carleton (2005) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/8562)

Cricetulus tibetanus

(A. T. Smith & Xie Yan, 2008)

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

tibetanus

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

245

Authority publication

Princeton

Name usages

  1. Smith & Xie (2008:245) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/64149)
  2. Mammal Diversity Database (2018:ID #136527) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67336)
  3. International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2024, https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/136527/22390916) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67246)

Urocricetus alticola

Lebedev, A. A. Bannikova, K. Neumann, Ushakova, N. V. Ivanova, & A. V. Surov, 2018

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

alticola

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

343

Authority publication

Zootaxa

Name usages

  1. Lebedev, Bannikova, Neumann, Ushakova, Ivanova & Surov (2018:343) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/34834)
  2. Mammal Diversity Database (2024, https://www.mammaldiversity.org/taxon/1002217) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67250)
  3. International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2024, https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/5523/115072870) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/67246)

Urocricetus lama alticola

Kryštufek & G. I. Shenbrot, 2025

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

alticola

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

143

Authority publication

Maribor

Name usages

Kryštufek & Shenbrot (2025:143) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/69578)

Urocricetus lama

Kryštufek & G. I. Shenbrot, 2025

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

lama

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

142

Authority publication

Maribor

Name usages

Kryštufek & Shenbrot (2025:142) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/69578)

Urocricetus lama lama

Kryštufek & G. I. Shenbrot, 2025

Family

Cricetidae

Root name

lama

Validity status

synonym

Nomenclatural status

name_combination

Authority page

143

Authority publication

Maribor

Name usages

Kryštufek & Shenbrot (2025:143) (information at https://hesperomys.com/a/69578)

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