See also: Pika (homonymy)

The pika is small a Mammifère Lagomorphe (just like the rabbit S). The pikas form ochotonidés ( Ochotonidae ). These animals of moderate size (8 - 25  cm) are characterized in particular by their reduced ears and posterior legs, as by their strident whistle which is worth the name of whistling hares to them .

Evolution

The divergence between the family of Ochotonidés and the others Lagomorphe S would go up with the Eocene . Thereafter this family occupied with the Cénozoïque a vast surface of distribution: Eurasia, North America and Africa. The climatic modifications Pleistocene S and the increased competition of the Rongeurs would explain their current containment with the cold areas Holarctique S.

Habitat

All Ochotonidés modern live in the moderate-cold areas of the holarctic écozone. The North-American pikas (two species) usually live in high-altitude with the foot of cliffs, where the stone heaps were formed by the action of the process freezing-thawing. The majority of the pikas use the stone heaps like shelter against the bad weather and the predatory ones. The Asian pikas (a score of species) attend habitats varied, since the Siberian steppes until the tops of the the Himalayas to more: 6000  meters; good number of them are digger and gregarious.

Food

The pikas are herbivores, eating all almost that pushes in their rocky habitat, even certain toxic plants (thus Ochotona rufescens is insensitive with the opiated Alcaloïde S). These animals not hibernating, they generally make provisions of vegetation lasting the court be alpine and store it in the form of heap of hay between the rocks; those are exploited during the winter. They can also seek their food by digging snow.

Classification

The S and S are:

• Ochotona
• Ochotona alpina - Pika of Altaï
• Ochotona cansus - pika of Gansu
• Ochotona collaris - pika with collar
• Ochotona curzoniae
• Ochotona dauurica - pika of Daourie
• Ochotona erythrotis
• Ochotona forresti
• Ochotona gaoligongensis - pika of Gaoligong
• Ochotona gloveri
• Ochotona himalayana
• Ochotona hyperborea
• Ochotona iliensis
• Ochotona koslowi - pika of Kozlov
• Ochotona ladacensis
• Ochotona macrotis
• Ochotona muliensis - Pika of Muli
• Ochotona nubrica
• Ochotona pallasi
• princeps Ochotona - American pika
• Ochotona pusilla
• Ochotona roylei
• Ochotona rufescens - Afghan pika
• Ochotona glowed
• Ochotona thibetana
• Ochotona thomasi
• Prolagus
• Prolagus sardus - pika corso-Sardinian (extinct at the time history)

External bonds

Random links:

Province of Pavia | Sky on the head | Bourbonnais (locomotive) | Department of Cushamen | Shaman (Finnish group)