jerboa

American  

[jer-boh-uh, jer-] / dʒərˈboʊ ə, dʒɛr- /

noun

1. any of various mouselike rodents of North Africa and Asia, as of the genera Jaculus and Dipus, with long hind legs used for jumping.

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jerboa British  

/ dʒɜːˈbəʊə /

noun

1. any small nocturnal burrowing rodent of the family Dipodidae, inhabiting dry regions of Asia and N Africa, having pale sandy fur, large ears, and long hind legs specialized for jumping

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Etymology

Origin of jerboa

1655–65; < New Latin < Arabic yarbūʿ; see gerbil

Example Sentences

The team identified a gene called shox2, for example, that is expressed in the jerboa feet, but not in mouse feet.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 23, 2021

From those transcriptomes of mouse and jerboa feet, they were able to narrow the pool of potential genes tied to foot size down by 90%, leaving a total of 1755.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 23, 2021

Indeed, the best footage here is captured at night, from the slinkings of the bizarre horned viper to the evasive tactics of the lesser jerboa, a tiny rodent with kangaroo-like hind legs.

From The Guardian • Feb. 22, 2013

The long-eared jerboa is an endangered species that's native to Mongolia and northern China.

From National Geographic

The unique specimen from the reedy country on the Murray of a very singular animal much resembling the jerboa or desert rat of Persia; also a rat-eared bat from the Lachlan.

From Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia, Volume 2 by Mitchell, Thomas