| Striped grass mouse Temporal range: Late Pliocene to Recent | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Barbary striped grass mouse (Lemniscomys barbarus) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Muridae |
| Tribe: | Arvicanthini |
| Genus: | Lemniscomys Trouessart, 1881 |
| Type species | |
| Mus barbarus | |
| Species | |
11, see text | |
Lemniscomys, sometimes known as striped grass mice or zebra mice, is a genus of murine rodents from Africa. Most species are from Sub-Saharan Africa; L. barbarus is the only one found north of the Sahara. [1] They are generally found in grassy habitats, but where several species overlap in distribution there is a level of habitat differentiation between them. [1]
Contents
They are 18.5–29 cm (7.3–11.4 in) long, of which about half is tail, and weigh 18–70 g (0.63–2.47 oz). [1] The pelage pattern of the species fall into three main groups: The "true" zebra mice with distinct dark and pale stripes (L. barbarus, L. hoogstraali and L. zebra ), the spotted grass mice with more spotty/interrupted stripes ( L. bellieri , L. macculus , L. mittendorfi and L. striatus ), and the single-striped grass mice with only a single dark stripe along the back ( L. griselda , L. linulus , L. rosalia and L. roseveari ). [2] [3]
They are generally considered diurnal, but at least some species can be active during the night. [3] They feed on plants, but sometimes take insects. [1] There are up to 12 young per litter, but 4–5 is more common. [3] The life expectancy is very short, in the wild often only a year, but a captive L. striatus lived for almost 5 years. [3] A more typical captive life expectancy is 2–2½ years. [4]
While most are common and not threatened, L. mittendorfi is restricted to Mount Oku and was considered Vulnerable by the IUCN, [5] though it is currently Least Concern . [6] L. hoogstraali and L. roseveari are both very poorly known, leading to their rating as Data Deficient. [7] [8] Some of the widespread species are regularly kept in captivity, especially L. barbarus, L. striatus and L. zebra. [4]
