Golden hamster stock of hamsters was exported from Syria to the United States in 1971, but apparently none of today's North American pets is descended from these (at least in the female line), because recent mitochondrial DNA studies have established that all domestic golden hamsters are descended from one female – probably the one captured in 1930 in Syria. Since the species was named, the genus "Cricetus" has been subdivided and this species (together with several others) was separated into the genus "Mesocricetus", leading to the currently accepted scientific name for the golden hamster of "Mesocricetus auratus". Following Professor Aharoni's collection in
The Hamsters The Hamsters The Hamsters were a British band from Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. They performed their first live show at the Cliffs Pavilion, Southend-on-Sea, on 1 April 1987, and their last at The Half Moon, Putney on 1 April 2012, exactly 25 years later. They initially played in local pubs with no ambitions to take themselves seriously or to turn professional. As the band ethos is to combine humour with music two members of the original band (now all three) use light-hearted and parodying pseudonyms as stage names. The original line-up was Snail's-Pace Slim on vocals and guitar, Rev Otis Elevator