What is "sand rat"

Gerbil \Ger"bil\ (j[~e]r"b[i^]l), Gerbille \Ger`bille"\ (zh[asl]r`b[-e]l"), n. [F. gerbille. Cf. Jerboa.]

1. (Zo["o]l.) One of several species of small, jumping, murine burrowing rodents, of the genus Gerbillus and related genera of the subfamily Gerbillinae. They have long soft pale fur and hind legs adapted for leaping. In their leaping powers they resemble the jerboa. They inhabit Africa, India, and Southern Europe.

2. (Zo["o]l.) A rodent ( Meriones unguiculatus) of the subfamily Gerbillinae that is commonly kept as a pet; it is also called the tamarisk gerbil, sand rat and jird. Its natural habitats are the dry regions of Northern Africa and Asia.

1. n. small nearly naked African mole rat of desert areas

2. southern European gerbil [syn: Meriones longifrons]

Psammomys obesus, known as the sand rat or fat sand rat, is a terrestrial mammal from the gerbil subfamily that is mostly found in North Africa and the Middle East, ranging from Mauritania to the Arabian Peninsula.