Allactaga (Allactaga) hotsoni Thomas 1920

Allactaga (Allactaga) hotsoni Thomas 1920, J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 26 (4): 936.

Type Locality: Iran, SE Kerman Prov., Sib, 20 mi. (32 km) SW Kant (Kont; Lay, 1967, provides coordinates), 3950 ft (1204 m).

Vernacular Names: Hotson's Jerboa.

Distribution: N, C, and SE Iran, SW Pakistan (Brown, 1980; Roberts, 1977, 1997; specimens in USNM), and S Afghanistan (Hassinger, 1973) in gravelly or stony peneplains "where practically no other rodent exists" (Roberts, 1997:352).

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Subgenus Allactaga (see Pavlinov and Shenbrot, 1985). Lay (1967) thought the holotype might represent A. williamsi, but Corbet (1978 c:155) noted that "the very large bullae, short tooth-row and short, wide incisive foramina place it well outside the range of variation otherwise known" in A. williamsi (Corbet regarded williamsi as a synonym of A. euphratica). Morphological distinctions between A. hotsoni and A. elator in Pakistan are described by Roberts (1997). Available published data support recognition of A. hotsoni as separate from A. elater and A. euphratica; see comment under A. firouzi .