Hamster

Hamster, any of the nine species of the genus Cricetus of the family Muridee, from the Paleearctic region and Egypt. The body is stout, the limbs and tail short, and there are large cheek-pouches. The Common Hamster (C. frumewta/rius) ranges from the Rhine to Siberia, and southward to the Obi. The length, including the tail, is about a foot, and the fur, which is of some commercial value, is yellowish-brown above, and black beneath. These animals feed on grain, fruit, roots, insects, worms, and frogs, and lay up in their chambered burrows a store of corn as provision for the period after their winter sleep,