The Mongolian hamster (A. curtatus) and the Eversmann's hamster (A. eversmanni) are the two species of the genus Allocricetulus. These hamsters are native to Mongolia and Kazakhstan, respectively. They are inhabit dry steppes and semi-deserts, but are also found near farms. The Gansu hamster (C. canus) is another species found in China, the only representative of the genus Cansumys. This is an arboreal species that lives in mountainous forests and feeds mainly on leaves and grasses.
Cricetulus is a genus with seven species, all living in semiarid regions of Asia and Europe. They weigh up to 1 oz and measure about 30 inches in body length and are also called dwarf hamsters, due to their small size in comparison to other species. The members of the genus Cricetulus are the Tibetan dwarf hamster (C. alticola), the striped dwarf hamster (C. barabensis), the Chinese dwarf hamster
(C. griseus), the Kam dwarf hamster (C. kamensis), the long-tailed dwarf hamster (C. longicaudatus), the grey dwarf hamster (C. migratorius) and the Sokolov's dwarf hamster (C. sokolovi).
The European hamster (Cricetus cricetus), also called the common or black-bellied hamster, is widely spread in Europe and Asia. It is the only species of this genus. Another single-specied genus is Tscherskia, whose representative is the
greater long-tailed hamster (T. triton). This hamster is native to China, where it is an agricultural pest. The greater long-tailed hamster likes to stand up on its rear legs to better observe its surrounding.
Mesocricetus contains four species of hamsters, including the Syrian or golden hamster (M. auratus), which is a popular house pets. The other species are the Turkish hamster (M. brandti), the Romanian hamster (M. newtoni) and the Ciscaucasian hamster (M. raddei). The genus Phodopus contains three species of dwarf hamsters, which are considered the more sociable among all hamster species and also popular in the pet market. The Campbell's dwarf hamster (P. campbelli), the Roborovski's dwarf hamster (P. roborovskii) and the Djungarian hamster (P. sungorus) are part of the genus Phodopus.