[2] It is found in grassland and other open areas in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovakia, and Ukraine.

[3] This species is found in grassland, steppe, cultivated land, orchards, clearings and woodland borders.

During the summer, most animals live in simple burrows, but some continue to inhabit the mound, and if it survives intact, it may be reused in the autumn for winter quarters.

New mounds are constructed between about mid-August and mid-November, when cereal crops are maturing and other plants producing seeds.

[5] The mounds usually take two or three weeks to construct, and their size is dependent on the number of animals involved and the abundance of the food supply.