Brandt’s ground squirrel (Spermophilus brevicauda) is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is found in eastern Kazakhstan and the northern half of the Xinjiang region of China. A generic revision of the genus was undertaken in 2007 which helped resolve the uncertainty as to whether this species should be considered a subspecies of Spermophilus erythrogenys. A phylogeny based on molecular sequence data determined that S. brevicauda was indeed a separate species from S. erythrogenys, and from the other similar species in the genus, S. pallidicauda and S. alashanicus.