Brazilian arboreal mouse | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Rodentia |
Family: | Cricetidae |
Subfamily: | Sigmodontinae |
Genus: | Rhagomys |
Species: | R. rufescens |
Binomial name | |
Rhagomys rufescens (Thomas, 1886) | |
The Brazilian arboreal mouse (Rhagomys rufescens) is a South American rodent species of the family Cricetidae. [2] It is found in the Atlantic Forest of southeast Brazil, often close to bamboo thickets. It can be distinguished from Rhagomys longilingua , the only other species in its genus, by the absence of spines among the hair. [3] Formerly believed to be extinct after no sightings were recorded for over 100 years, the species has since been found in four localities. [1] However, it is nowhere common, and all of these are forest fragments, and ongoing deforestation threatens the species' survival. For these reasons, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being "vulnerable". [1]
The Brazilian arboreal mouse is a small mouse with small rounded ears and vibrissae (whiskers) long enough to reach the ears. The dorsal fur is reddish-brown which gradually fades to reddish-grey on the ventral surface. The hair is soft, and this distinguishes Rhagomys rufescens from the only other species in the genus, Rhagomys longilingua , which has spines mixed in with the hairs. They also differ in certain skull characteristics, and their ranges do not overlap. [4] The head-and-body length slightly exceeds the tail length. The tail is brownish and has small scales. It is sparsely clad in blackish hairs that get longer near the tip and form a tuft. The hind feet are broad with bare soles and fleshy plantar pads. The hallux (big toe) bears a nail rather than a claw, a unique characteristic of this genus. The female has three pairs of mammary glands. [4]
R. rufescens was first described in 1886 from Rio de Janeiro State in Brazil but it has not been found in that locality for over one hundred years and was believed to be extinct. However, it has now been found in four other localities in Brazil, near Ubatuba in São Paulo State, including in Pincinguaba State Park, and near Viçosa in Minas Gerais State. It typically lives in Atlantic forest, often among bamboos, and also in modified forest habitats. [1]
Little is known about this species and its natural history. Several specimens were caught in pitfall traps sunk in the ground, but it is thought that it is an arboreal rodent, or one that scrambles among the undergrowth, because of the morphology of its feet. Examination of the stomach contents of one individual that was caught showed that it had eaten several species of ant. [4]
Gardner's climbing mouse is a rodent species from South America. It is found in western Brazil, southeastern Peru and northeastern Bolivia. It is an uncommon, arboreal species, but faces no particular threats so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated it as being a "least-concern species".
Scolomys ucayalensis, also known as the long-nosed scolomys or Ucayali spiny mouse is a nocturnal rodent species from South America. It is part of the genus Scolomys within the tribe Oryzomyini. It is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in various different habitats in the Amazon rainforest.
Chiropodomys is a genus of Old World rats and mice native to Southeast Asia and northeast India. They are tree-dwelling, very small mice, mostly found in tropical rainforest. In total six extant species have been identified, but only one of these, Chiropodomys gliroides, is common and widely distributed, and has been extensively studied.
The Palawan pencil-tailed tree mouse is a species of arboreal rodent in the family Muridae. It is known from lowland forest near sea level, coconut groves, and bamboo thickets. It is endemic to the Palawan Faunal Region in the Philippines. It has been recorded on Balabac, Busuanga, Palawan, Dumaran, and Calauit islands.
The Indomalayan pencil-tailed tree mouse or simply pencil-tailed tree mouse is a species of arboreal rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in northeastern India, southern China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Peninsular Malaysia, and Indonesia. This locally abundant but patchily distributed species occurs in primary and secondary forests, without affinity to particular forest types. It can suffer from deforestation and is sometimes harvested for consumption.
Koopman's pencil-tailed tree mouse is a species of arboreal rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Pagai and Siberut islands in the Mentawai Islands, off the western coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Its natural habitat is tropical primary lowland forest. It is threatened by habitat loss (logging).
The large pencil-tailed tree mouse or greater pencil-tailed tree mouse is a species of arboreal rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Borneo where it is only known from Sabah and Sarawak (Malaysia), although it is likely to also occur in Kalimantan.
The gray-bellied pencil-tailed tree mouse is a species of arboreal rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Borneo where it is known from Gunung Kinabalu and from Long Petak in northern Kalimantan (Indonesia). It probably has wider distribution than currently documented. Its natural habitat is montane tropical forest. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Geoxus valdivianus, also known as the long-clawed mole mouse or Valdivian long-clawed akodont, is a species of rodent in the tribe Abrotrichini of family Cricetidae found in the Valdivian temperate rain forests and Magellanic subpolar forests of Argentina and Chile. It is one of two species in the genus Geoxus.
The Ceylon spiny mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Sri Lanka, where it is known as ශ්රී ලංකා කටු හීන් මීයා in Sinhala language.
Nectomys is a genus of rodent in the tribe Oryzomyini of family Cricetidae. It is closely related to Amphinectomys and was formerly considered congeneric with Sigmodontomys. It consists of five species, which are allopatrically distributed across much of South America: Nectomys grandis in montane Colombia; Nectomys palmipes on Trinidad and in nearby Venezuela, Nectomys apicalis in the western margins of the Amazon biome, Nectomys rattus in much of Amazonia, and Nectomys squamipes in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. These species are generally semiaquatic, are normally found near water, and are commonly called water rats.
Oecomys speciosus, also known as the savannah oecomys, arboreal rice rat, or Venezuelan arboreal rice rat, is a species of rodent in the genus Oecomys of family Cricetidae. It ranges over northeastern Colombia and much of Venezuela, including the island of Trinidad. This rodent lives in tropical rainforest and tropical dry forest, including secondary forest and gallery forest, as well as in savanna habitat.
The lowland brush mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Indonesia on the island of Salawati and on the Vogelkop Peninsula in Papua Province, Indonesia.
Coues's climbing mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. It is named in honour of the American zoologist Elliott Coues who studied birds and small mammals.
Scolomys melanops, also known as the short-nosed scolomys, South American spiny mouse, Ecuadorian spiny mouse, or gray spiny mouse, is a species of rodent in the genus Scolomys of family Cricetidae. It is a forest mouse and was thought to be endemic to Ecuador but it is now known to have a wider distribution, being also present in part of Peru.
Oecomys catherinae, also known as the Atlantic Forest oecomys, is a species of rodent in the genus Oecomys from eastern Brazil.
The cerrado climbing mouse or long-tailed rhipidomys is an arboreal rodent species in the family Cricetidae from South America. It is found in primary or secondary forests of the cerrado and caatinga in central and eastern Brazil, and has also been seen in the Atlantic Forest. Its karyotype is 2n = 44, FN = 48-52. They are nocturnal animals and can be found in both tree canopies and on the ground.
The long-tongued arboreal mouse is a South American rodent species of the family Cricetidae. It is found in a variety of habitats, including dense forest, in Bolivia and Peru at elevations from 450 to 2,100 metres on the eastern side of the Andes. The species is at least partly arboreal. It is distinguished from the Brazilian arboreal mouse, the only other known member of Rhagomys, by spiny fur and certain skull features such as the presence of beading in the interorbital region.
The Peruvian climbing mouse or lesser Peruvian rhipidomys, is a South American species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is endemic to the eastern slopes of the Andes in central Peru, where it is found at altitudes from 700 to 1,800 metres. The species is nocturnal and arboreal, and lives in lower montane forest and cloud forest. It is threatened by forest clearance for agriculture and coca cultivation but is listed as a "least-concern species" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Rhagomys is a genus of South American rodents in the tribe Thomasomyini of the family Cricetidae. Two species separated by about 3100 km are known, from southeast Peru and Bolivia east of the Andes, and in the Atlantic Forest of southeast Brazil. An undetermined species of Rhagomys has also been reported from Mato Grosso in central Brazil. The species are as follows: