desert rat

plural desert rats

1. One of various mouselike rodents species inhabiting deserts:
   1. A gerbil (subfamily Gerbillinae) of the deserts of Africa and Asia
   2. A kangaroo rat (genus Dipodomys) from North America
   3. A Natal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis) from Africa
   4. A jerboa, including those of species Jaculus orientalis and Jaculus jaculus (lesser Egyptian jerboa), which inhabit the desert regions of North Africa.
2. historicalslangA British or Australian soldier who served in North Africa with the British 7th Armoured Division in 1941-42.
3. historicalslangA wandering prospector.