Back Жумэрэн ADY Hamster Afrikaans Hamster ALS أقداد (فصيلة فرعية) Arabic اقداد ARZ Cricetinae AST Ирлән Bashkir Hamster BAN Хомяковидни Bulgarian হ্যামস্টার Bengali/Bangla
| Hamster Temporal range: Middle Miocene – present
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| Cricetus cricetus, the European hamster | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Cricetinae Fischer de Waldheim, 1817 |
| Genera | |
Hamsters are rodents (order Rodentia) belonging to the subfamily Cricetinae, which contains 19 species classified in seven genera.[1][2] They have become established as popular small pets.[3] The best-known species of hamster is the golden or Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus), which is the type most commonly kept as a pet. Other hamster species commonly kept as pets are the three species of dwarf hamster, Campbell's dwarf hamster (Phodopus campbelli), the winter white dwarf hamster (Phodopus sungorus) and the Roborovski hamster (Phodopus roborovskii).
Hamsters feed primarily on seeds, fruits, vegetation, and occasionally burrowing insects. In the wild, they are crepuscular: they forage during the twilight hours. In captivity, however, they are known to live a conventionally nocturnal lifestyle, waking around sundown to feed and exercise.[4]. Physically, they are stout-bodied with distinguishing features that include elongated cheek pouches extending to their shoulders, which they use to carry food back to their burrows, as well as a short tail and fur-covered feet.
- ^ "Cricetinae (Hamsters)". Animal Diversity Web.
- ^ Fox, Sue (2006). Hamsters. T. F. H. Publications.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Barriewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Bartlett, Patricia Pope (2003). The Hamster Handbook. Barron's Educational Series. p. 113. ISBN 978-0-7641-2294-1.