Meriones (Pallasiomys) shawi Duvernoy 1842

Meriones (Pallasiomys) shawi Duvernoy 1842, Mem. Soc. Sci. Nancy, 3: 22.

Type Locality: Algeria, Oran.

Vernacular Names: Shaw's Jird.

Synonyms: Meriones (Pallasiomys) albipes Lataste 1882; Meriones (Pallasiomys) auratus Ranck 1968; Meriones (Pallasiomys) auziensis Lataste 1882; Meriones (Pallasiomys) azizi Setzer 1956; Meriones (Pallasiomys) crassibulla Lataste 1885; Meriones (Pallasiomys) isis Thomas 1919; Meriones (Pallasiomys) laticeps Lataste 1885; Meriones (Pallasiomys) longiceps Lataste 1885; Meriones (Pallasiomys) richardii (Loche 1867); Meriones (Pallasiomys) savii (Loche 1867); Meriones (Pallasiomys) sellysii (Pomel 1856); Meriones (Pallasiomys) trouessarti Lataste 1882 .

Distribution: Mediterranean littoral from E Morocco through N Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt to N Sinai, never found more than about 150 mi (240 km) inland (Lay and Nadler, 1969, and references therein; Pavlinov, 2000).

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Subgenus Pallasiomys . A distinctive species that ranges mostly north of M. libycus but is sympatric with it in several regions (Lay and Nadler, 1969; Zaime and Pascal, 1988). The distribution maps of Algerian (Kowalski and Rzebik-Kowalska, 1991) and Egyptian (Osborn and Helmy, 1980) ranges of M. shawi and M. libycus illustrate their geographic relationships–mostly parapatric, but sympatric near the coast. Meriones shawi and M. libycus are often confused in museum collections and published reports (see the reviews by Lay and Nadler, 1969, and Pavlinov et al., 1990). The taxon grandis has traditionally been included in M. shawi but Pavlinov et al. (1990) reviewed grandis as a species and Pavlinov (2000) recorded the morphological traits distinguishing M. grandis from M. shawi; he also documented broad overlap between the two species in E Morocco, N Algeria, and Tunisia (see account of M. grandis).