Opossums are members of the marsupial order Didelphimorphia endemic to the Americas. The largest order of marsupials in the Western Hemisphere, it comprises 93 species in 18 genera. Opossums originated in South America and entered North America in the Great American Interchange following the connection of North and South America.
Chevrotains, or mouse-deer, are diminutive, even-toed ungulates that make up the family Tragulidae, and are the only living members of the infraorder Tragulina. The 10 extant species are placed in three genera, but several species also are known only from fossils. The extant species are found in forests in South and Southeast Asia; a single species, the water chevrotain, is found in the rainforests of Central and West Africa. They are solitary, or live in loose groupings or pairs, and feed almost exclusively on plant material. Chevrotains are the smallest hoofed mammals in the world. The Asian species weigh between 0.7 and 8.0 kg, while the African chevrotain is considerably larger, at 7–16 kg (15–35 lb). With an average length of 45 cm (18 in) and an average height of 30 cm (12 in), the Java mouse-deer is the smallest surviving ungulate (hoofed) mammal, as well as the smallest artiodactyl. Despite their common name of "mouse deer", they are not closely related to true deer.
Heteromyidae is a family of rodents consisting of kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice, pocket mice and spiny pocket mice. Most heteromyids live in complex burrows within the deserts and grasslands of western North America, though species within the genus Heteromys are also found in forests and their range extends down as far as northern South America. They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their fur-lined cheek pouches to their burrows.
The rodent subfamily Sigmodontinae includes New World rats and mice, with at least 376 species. Many authorities include the Neotominae and Tylomyinae as part of a larger definition of Sigmodontinae. When those genera are included, the species count numbers at least 508. Their distribution includes much of the New World, but the genera are predominantly South American, such as brucies. They invaded South America from Central America as part of the Great American Interchange near the end of the Miocene, about 5 million years ago. Sigmodontines proceeded to diversify explosively in the formerly isolated continent. They inhabit many of the same ecological niches that the Murinae occupy in the Old World.
Reithrodontomys is the genus of groove-toothed New World harvest mice.
Habromys is a genus of rodent in the family Cricetidae, found in Mexico and Central America. It contains these species, all but one of which are threatened or endangered, five of them critically so. H. lophurus is near threatened.
The Mexican volcano mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae endemic to high elevation areas of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt.
The Mexican water mouse, Mexican fishing mouse or Goodwin's water mouse, is a species of semiaquatic rodent in the family Cricetidae. It has a restricted range in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, Threatened by deforestation and water pollution, it is listed as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Rheomys raptor, also known as the Goldman's water mouse or Goldman's Ichthyomyine, is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. This mouse is semiaquatic and its carnivorous diet includes invertebrates. The conservation status of the species is rated as "least concern" because of its sizable population and the presence of several protected areas within its range. However, deforestation and water pollution represent potential threats.
Thomas's water mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae found in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Mexico at altitudes of 400 to 2700 m. It lives near forest streams and is semiaquatic; its carnivorous diet includes both invertebrates and small vertebrates. The conservation status of the species is rated as "near threatened" because of the small size of its range and the threat of degradation of its habitat, including the water quality of the streams it lives along.
Underwood's water mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is found in Costa Rican and western Panamanian cloud forest at altitudes from 1500 to 2000 m. This mouse lives near streams in highland forests and is semiaquatic; its carnivorous diet includes invertebrates. Although its range is small, it includes a number of protected areas, and the population appears to be sizable; the IUCN therefore rates the conservation status of the species as "least concern".
The Mexican spiny pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is native to Mexico and Texas in the United States where it is found in dry, scrubby habitats. The IUCN has assessed it as being of "least concern". It was formerly placed in the genus Liomys, which is now recognized to be paraphyletic and has been subsumed into Heteromys.
Water mouse can refer to several types of not closely related semiaquatic rodents of superfamily Muroidea:
