Paraechinus

Paraechinus
P. aethiopicus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Eulipotyphla
Family:	Erinaceidae
Subfamily:	Erinaceinae
Genus:	Paraechinus Trouessart, 1879
Type species
Erinaceus micropus Blyth, 1846
Species
P. aethiopicus P. hypomelas P. micropus P. nudiventris

Paraechinus is a genus of hedgehogs. Members are small and nocturnal. The genus contains four species from North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia: ^[1]

• Desert hedgehog (Paraechinus aethiopicus)
• Brandt's hedgehog (Paraechinus hypomelas)
• Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus)
• Bare-bellied hedgehog (Paraechinus nudiventris)

Locomotory activity patterns

The locomotory activity of the Desert hedgehog (Paraechinus aethiopicus) occurred during the dark phases of both long and short day cycles. Therefore this species is considered nocturnal. ^[2]

The Paraechinus hypomelas hypomelas is distributed throughout mainland Iran to the western side of the Indus River in Pakistan, suggesting the presence of a single subspecies Paraechinus hypomelas niger from the entire Arabian Peninsula. Paraechinus hypomelas blanfordi could potentially be considered a new sub-species because it deviates from the rest of them. ^[3]

References

1. Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M., eds. (2005). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN   978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC   62265494.
2. Alagaili, A. N.; Bennett, N. C.; Amor, N. M.; Hart, D. W. (2020-06-01). "The locomotory activity patterns of the arid-dwelling desert hedgehog, Paraechinus aethiopicus, from Saudi Arabia". Journal of Arid Environments. 177: 104141. doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2020.104141. ISSN   0140-1963. S2CID   213782014.
3. Yusefi, Gholam Hosein; Kiabi, Bahram H.; Khalatbari, Leili; Faizolahi, Kaveh; Monteiro, Nuno Miguel (2016-10-01). "Morphological analysis of Brandt's hedgehog (Paraechinus hypomelas) reflects the isolation history of Persian Gulf islands and has implications for taxonomy". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 119 (2): 497–510. doi:10.1111/bij.12842. ISSN   0024-4066.