| Stephens' woodrat | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Neotominae |
| Genus: | Neotoma |
| Species: | N. stephensi |
| Binomial name | |
| Neotoma stephensi Goldman, 1905 [2] | |
Stephen's woodrat (Neotoma stephensi) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae found in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah in the United States. [1]
Individuals of N. stephensi are small with long, silky fur and a slightly bushy tail. They are colored grayish buff with a paler head and a pinkish buff belly. They have white fur on their pectoral, inguinal (groin), foot, and occasionally throat regions. Their ears and topside of their tail have grayish-brown fur. They have a short and broad skull with a small and smoothly rounded braincase; broad, flat frontal region; large bullae; and a first upper molar without an antero-internal sulcus. [2]
N. stephensi resembles the species Neotoma lepida , but can be distinguished by its larger hind foot, color, and the shape of its skull, which is generally larger with a longer toothrow, larger interparietal bone, and smaller bullae than that of N. lepida. [2]
N. stephensi was first identified in the Hualapai Mountains of Arizona at an altitude of 6,300 feet (1,900 m). [2] N. stephensi inhabits rocky areas and mountains within pinyon-juniper woodlands, sometimes but not usually near cliffs. They may also live among yellow pines, cacti, or agave. Their middens are made of debris and constructed among rocks or around the bases of trees, as well as above ground in juniper. They occur in the ranges from central Arizona to southern Utah, western New Mexico to the north of Grant County, and up to the Mohave County in west Arizona, but may be extinct in Utah. [1]
N. stepheni is nocturnal. They do not hibernate, and they do not aestivate. [1]
One generation of N. stepheni is two years long. They breed in winter and early fall, and juveniles appear from March to May. N. stepheni may have up to two or more litters per year, from 1–5 offspring per litter with an average of two. Females are sexually mature at 9–10 months and typically do not survive to reproduce next season. [1]
N. stepheni primarily consumes foliage and juniper seeds, and may learn to selectively eat junipers that have low levels of toxic defensive chemicals. They may also feed on ephedra, [1] but they are primarily a specialist species on Juniperus monosperma . [3]
When compared to another woodrat species, the generalist species Neotoma albigula , the activity of the protein Permeability-glycoprotein (Pgp) was found to be 2.4 times higher in the small intestine of N. stephensi than that of N. albigula. Pgp is a transport protein that prevents toxins from entering epithelial cells, thus suggesting that it allows N. stephensi to consume a diet with much higher amounts of juniper leaves and the toxins within them. [3]
N. stepheni is not threatened. Furthermore, there are protected areas in the natural range of N stepheni. [1]
The desert woodrat is a species of pack rat native to desert regions of western North America.
The Neotominae are a subfamily of the family Cricetidae. They consist of four tribes, 16 genera, and many species of New World rats and mice, predominantly found in North America. Among them are the well-known deer mice, white-footed mice, packrats, and grasshopper mice.
The eastern woodrat, also known as the Florida woodrat or bush rat, is a pack rat native to the central and Eastern United States. It constructs large dens that may serve as nests for many generations and stores food in outlying caches for the winter. While widespread and not uncommon, it has declined or disappeared in several areas.
The Mexican woodrat is a medium-sized pack rat.
The Allegheny woodrat, is a species of "pack rat" in the genus Neotoma. Once believed to be a subspecies of the eastern woodrat, extensive DNA analysis has proven it to be a distinct species.
The white-throated woodrat is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is found from central Mexico north to Utah and Colorado in the United States. It is primarily a western species in the United States, extending from central Texas west to southeastern California. Populations east of the Rio Grande in New Mexico and Trans-Pecos Texas, previously considered to be variants of the white-throated woodrat, have since 1988 been assigned to the white-toothed woodrat.
The bushy-tailed woodrat, or packrat is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae found in Canada and the United States. Its natural habitats are boreal forests, temperate forests, dry savanna, temperate shrubland, and temperate grassland.
The dusky-footed woodrat is a species of nocturnal rodent in the family Cricetidae. They are commonly called "packrats" or "trade rats" and build large, domed dens that can reach several feet in height. Coyotes and other predators will attempt to prey on these rodents by laying waste to the dens, but the sheer volume of material is usually dissuasive. Occasionally, dusky-footed woodrats will build satellite dens in trees. Although these animals are solitary, except in the mating season, dens are frequently found in clusters of up to several dozen, forming rough "communities". The mating system in this species appears to be variable, with promiscuity most generally at high population densities and monogamy at lower densities.
The yellow-nosed cotton rat is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is native to Mexico and to the states of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas in the United States, where it inhabits mountain grassland, scrub, and pinyon-juniper woodland. It is common over much of its wide range and the IUCN considers it to be of "least concern".
The Gobi jerboa is a species of rodent in the family Dipodidae. It is found in China and Mongolia. Its natural habitats are temperate grassland and temperate desert.
The narrow-skulled pocket mouse is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is endemic to western Mexico, living west of the Sierra Madre Occidental crest.
The Moupin pika, also known as Ribetischer Pika, Moupin-Pika, Pika del Tibet, and Manipuri pika, is a species of mammal in the pika family, Ochotonidae. It has many subspecies, some of which may be distinct species. Its summer pelage is dark russet-brown with some light spots on the dorsal side, and ochraceous buff tinged on the belly. In winter it is lighter, with buff to dull brown dorsal pelage. A generalist herbivore, it is found in the mountains of the eastern Tibetan Plateau in China, Bhutan, India (Sikkim), and northern Myanmar. Both the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Endangered Species and the Red List of China's Vertebrates classify it as a species of least concern; although one subspecies may be endangered.
Crotalus concolor, commonly known as the midget faded rattlesnake, faded rattlesnake, and yellow rattlesnake, is a pit viper species found in the western United States. It is a small rattlesnake known for its faded color pattern. Like all other pit vipers, it is venomous.
The big-eared woodrat is a nocturnal rodent of the woodrat genus Neotoma, in the family Cricetidae. Closely related to, and formerly included in the species Neotoma fuscipes, it is endemic to western North America and occurs west and south of the Salinas Valley from the California Coast Ranges south of Monterey Bay to northern Baja California, as well as in the Sierra Nevada, extending north to the South Fork American River.
A pack rat or packrat, also called a woodrat or trade rat, are any species in the North and Central American rodent genus Neotoma. Pack rats have a rat-like appearance, with long tails, large ears, and large, black eyes. Pack rats are noticeably larger than deer mice, harvest mice, and grasshopper mice, and are usually somewhat larger than cotton rats.
