Chinese white-bellied rat

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Chinese white-bellied rat
Systematics
Family : Long-tailed mice (Muridae)
Subfamily : Old World Mice (Murinae)
Tribe : Rattini
Dacnomys group
Genre : White-bellied rats ( Niviventer )
Type : Chinese white-bellied rat
Scientific name
Niviventer confucianus
( Milne-Edwards , 1871)

The Chinese white-bellied rat ( Niviventer confucianus ) is a rodent from the genus of the white-bellied rats ( Niviventer ) within the old world mice (Murinae). It is distributed over large parts of the People's Republic of China , the north of Myanmar and the north-west of Vietnam and Thailand .

features

The Chinese white-bellied rat reaches a head-torso length of 11.6 to 17.3 centimeters with a tail of 14.4 to 25.5 centimeters in length . The rear foot length is around 28 to 35 millimeters, the ear length 21 to 25 millimeters. The skull has a total length of 31.5 to 38 millimeters, less often up to 43 millimeters.

The back fur of this species can be soft with long hair or bristly, the back color varied from red-brown to dull brown-gray, lighter ocher-colored body sides. The peritoneum is pale yellowish white and sharply demarcated from the back fur, sometimes there is a sand-colored spot in the middle of the chest. The tail is slightly longer than the length of the head and trunk, it is two-colored with a brown upper side and a whitish underside; the tip of the tail is completely white. Regionally, the species is difficult to distinguish from the chestnut white-bellied rat ( Niviventer fulvescens ) and in areas where both species occur, the Chinese white-bellied rat is usually darker in color and has a narrower snout.

distribution

The Chinese white-bellied rat is distributed over large parts of the People's Republic of China , the north of Myanmar and the northwest of Vietnam and Thailand . The distribution area in China includes Anhui , Beijing , Fujian , Gansu , Guangdong , Guangxi , Guizhou , Hebei , Henan , Hubei , Hunan , Jiangsu , Jiangxi , Jilin , Liaoning , Inner Mongolia , Ningxia , Qinghai , Shaanxi , Shandong , Shanghai , Shanxi , Sichuan , Tianjin , Tibet , Yunnan and Zhejiang .

Way of life

The Chinese white-bellied rat lives in many different habitats and habitats, from primary forests to agricultural areas, in secondary forest areas it is twice as common as in primary forests . In Thailand it occurs in wooded mountain forests.

Systematics

The Chinese white-bellied rat is classified as an independent species within the white-bellied rats ( Niviventer ), which consists of 17 species. The first scientific description comes from the French naturalist Alphonse Milne-Edwards , who described the species in 1871 using individuals from Baoxing in Sichuan. The species was partially merged with the great Himalayan white-bellied rat ( Niviventer niviventer ) and regarded as a synonym . Animals that were found in Taiwan and assigned to this species belong to the Taiwanese white-bellied rat ( Niviventer culturatus ), which is sometimes regarded as a subspecies, and animals from Hainan to the Indochinese white-bellied rat ( Niviventer tenaster ).

Status, threat and protection

The Chinese white-bellied rat is classified as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified with the large distribution area, the assumed large stocks in their distribution area and the small decline in stocks. No potential hazards are known.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Confucian Niviventer. 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 , pp. 266-267.
  2. ↑ a b c d Niviventer confucianus in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2016.2. Listed by: D. Lunde, AT Smith, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  3. ↑ a b Niviventer confucianus . 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 .

literature

  • Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Confucian Niviventer. 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 , pp. 266-267.

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