Tree prick
| Tree prick | ||||||||||||
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Urson ( Erethizon dorsatum ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Erethizontidae | ||||||||||||
| Bonaparte , 1845 |
The tree prickers or New World porcupines (Erethizontidae) are a family from the order of rodents . Their physique resembles the porcupines (Hystricidae) of the Old World. Although both groups belong to the porcupine relatives (Hystricognatha), they should not be very closely related to each other, the similarities are only based on convergence . Tree prickles are common across the American continent from Alaska to northern Argentina .
description
They are clumsy, relatively large rodents that, unlike porcupines, are adapted to a climbing lifestyle to a certain extent. The balls of the feet are widened and the big toe is mostly receded. The tail is long and thornless in the pronged spines and the South American tree spines and developed into a prehensile tail. The spiked dress consists of modified short hair, which, unlike the porcupine, is individually anchored in the skin muscles. The head body length of these animals varies from 30 to 90 centimeters, the weight of the Urson ( Erethizon dorsatum ) can be up to 18 kilograms.
Way of life
Forests are the preferred habitat for most species, but the Urson can also be found in grasslands or rocky areas. The diet of these animals consists of plant material such as bark, buds, tree needles, roots, leaves and fruits. Tree prickers are often found on trees as they are good at climbing. They are generally nocturnal and live individually or in pairs.
Systematics
The family comprises three genera with around 18 species:
- The Urson or tree porcupine ( Erethizon dorsatum ) is common in Canada and the USA and is the largest member of its family.
- The more than a dozen species of the prehensile spines ( Coendou ) are named after their prehensile tail. They also contain the mountain prick and the South American tree prick , the former originally forming the genus Echinoprocta , the latter the genus Sphiggurus .
- The bristle tree prick ( Chaetomys subspinosus ) lives in southeastern Brazil . It is controversial whether he belongs to the tree prickers or the sting rats .
See also
- Quillwork is a Native American technique of adorning clothing with spikes. The spines of the tree prick are used here.
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 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Robert S. Voss, Caldonia Hubbard, Sharon A. Jansa: Phylogenetic Relationships of New World Porcupines (Rodentia, Erethizontidae): Implications for Taxonomy, Morphological Evolution, and Biogeography. In: American Museum Novitates. Volume 3769, 2013, pp. 1–36, doi: 10.1206 / 3769.2 .
- ^ Robert S. Voss: Family Erethizontidae Bonaparte, 1845. In: James L. Patton, Ulyses FJ Pardiñas, Guillermo D'Elía (eds.): Mammals of South America. Volume 2: Rodents. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 2015, pp. 786-805.
