Bedford vole

Bedford vole
Systematics
Superfamily :	Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family :	Burrowers (Cricetidae)
Subfamily :	Voles (arvicolinae)
Tribe :	Myodini
Genre :	Proedromys
Type :	Bedford vole
Scientific name of the genus
	Proedromys
	Thomas , 1911
Scientific name of the species
	Proedromys bedfordi
	Thomas , 1911

The Bedford vole or Duke of Bedford's vole ( Proedromys bedfordi ) is a rodent species from the subfamily of voles (Arvicolinae). It is the only kind of the monotypical genus Proedromys . It is only occupied by a few individuals from the south of Gansu and the north of Sichuan in the People's Republic of China .

features

The Bedford vole reaches a head-trunk length of 7.5 to 10.0 centimeters with a tail of 1.4 to 1.5 centimeters in length . The rear foot length is 16 to 17 millimeters, the ear length 11 to 14 millimeters. The back fur consists of long, dull brown hair, the belly side is grayish white. The tail is two-colored with a brown top and a matt white underside, it is covered with long hair. The hands and feet are also matt white.

The skull has a total length of 25 to 28 millimeters. It is strongly built and strongly curved in profile with clearly pronounced postorbital protrusions of the pars squamosa of the temporal bone . The posterior palate is connected to the wing bone . The molars are rootless and grow accordingly for a lifetime. The upper incisors are broad, strongly curved, and furrowed on the front. The enamel of the molars is simply created. The females have four pairs of teats , two each in the chest area and two in the groin area.

distribution

The Bedford vole is found only in the south of Gansu and in the north of Sichuan in the People's Republic of China . A total of only three sites are known, on an expedition in the Jiuhaigou National Nature Reserve in 2003 a total of 16 individuals were found.

Way of life

Very little information is available about the way of life of the Bedford vole and evidence of the species is very rare. The two known records come from mountain forests at altitudes of 2440 to 2550 meters.

Systematics

The Bedford vole is classified as the only species within the monotypical genus Proedromys . The first scientific description of the species and the genus comes from the British zoologist Oldfield Thomas , who described it in 1911 using individuals from the area near Minchow in the south of Gansu. The species was partially assigned to the field mice ( Microtus ).

The species was named by Thomas after Herbrand Arthur Russell, the 11th Duke of Bedford (1858-1940), who was a military and naturalist member of the Zoological Society of London and a sponsor of the British Museum . Thomas also named the golden takin ( Budorcas bedfordi ) after him, while he named the little striped shrew ( Sorex bedfordiae ) after his wife Mary Russell, Duchess of Bedford .

Status, threat and protection

The Bedford vole is classified as endangered (vulnerable) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified with the very small proven distribution area with only three proven occurrences. In this area, the species is threatened by habitat loss due to the conversion of forest areas into agricultural land.

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Duke of Bedford's Vole. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , p. 238.

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Proedromys bedfordi in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Listed by: CH Johnston, AT Smith, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
^ Proedromys bedfordi . In: 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 .
↑ Bo Beolens, Michael Grayson, Michael Watkins: The Eponym Dictionary of Mammals. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009; P. 34; ISBN 978-0-8018-9304-9 .

literature

Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Duke of Bedford's Vole. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , p. 238.

Web links

Proedromys bedfordi inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Listed by: CH Johnston, AT Smith, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2016.

[Smith_&_Yan_Xie_2009-1] Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Duke of Bedford's Vole. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , p. 238.