African wood mice
| African wood mice | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Hylomyscus | ||||||||||||
| Thomas , 1926 |
The African wood mice ( Hylomyscus ) are a genus of rodents from the group of old world mice (Murinae). The genus includes ten species.
African wood mice reach a head body length of 7 to 12 centimeters, the tail measures 8 to 17 centimeters and their weight is 8 to 42 grams. They are colored red-brown to gray-brown on the upper side, the underside is white-gray. Their fur is soft, the snout is pointed, and the ears are large.
These rodents live in Africa south of the Sahara . Their habitat is forests and other densely covered undergrowth areas. They are nocturnal tree dwellers who climb quickly and skillfully through the branches. During the day, they retreat into self-made leaf nests, which they create in tree hollows or other hiding places. Their diet consists of fruits and other parts of plants, and to a lesser extent they also eat insects.
Systematics
There are nine types:
- Hylomyscus aeta is common from Cameroon to Uganda.
- Hylomyscus alleni occurs from Guinea to Gabon.
- Hylomyscus baeri lives in West Africa, from Sierra Leone to Ghana.
- Hylomyscus carillus lives in western and central Angola.
- Hylomyscus denniae inhabits various mountainous countries in eastern Africa.
- Hylomyscus grandis occurs only in the area of Mount Oku in Cameroon.
- Hylomyscus heinrichorum , was described as a separate species in 2015. The species occurs in western Angola.
- Hylomyscus kerbispeterhansi , was originallyconfusedwith H. denniae and described as a separate species in 2014. The species occurs in western Kenya.
- The small harvest wood mouse ( Hylomyscus parvus ) is widespread from Cameroon to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
- Hylomyscus stella lives between Nigeria and Tanzania.
Most species are not endangered according to the IUCN . However, the species H. baeri , which is classified as "endangered" ( endangered ) and H. grandis , which is listed as " critically endangered ", deserve special attention .
The genus is systematically part of the Stenocephalemys group .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael D. Carleton, Rebecca A. Banasiak & William T. Stanley: A new species of the rodent genus Hylomyscus from Angola, with a distributional summary of the H. anselli species group (Muridae: Murinae: Praomyini) . Zootaxa, 4040, 2, pp. 101-128, 2015
- ↑ TC Demos, B. Agwanda & MJ Hickerson: Integrative taxonomy within the Hylomyscus denniae complex (Rodentia: Muridae) and a new species from Kenya. Journal of Mammalogy, 95, 1, E1 – E15, 2014 doi : 10.1644 / 13-MAMM-A-268
literature
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 2 volumes. 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD et al. 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .
- Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World. A taxonomic and geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .
Web links
- Hylomyscus on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved October 15, 2009.