Vernays climbing mouse
| Vernays climbing mouse | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Dendromus vernayi | ||||||||||||
| Hill & Carter , 1937 |
Vernays climbing mouse ( Dendromus vernayi ) is a little researched rodent from the genus of African climbing mice ( Dendromus ). It was discovered in 1925 during the Vernay-Angola expedition of the American Museum of Natural History and scientifically described in 1937 by John Eric Hill and Thomas Donald Carter as a subspecies of the Brant climbing mouse ( Dendromus mesomelas ). Since the 1990s it has been increasingly recognized as a species. The art epithet honors the antique dealer and philanthropist Arthur Stannard Vernay (1877–1960), a trustee of the American Museum of Natural History.
features
Vernays climbing mouse reaches a head-torso length of 63 to 77 mm, a tail length of 80 to 86 mm, an ear length of 13 to 14 mm and a hind foot length of 19 to 22 mm. There are no specific data on weight. Vernay's climbing mouse is a small species with a long prehensile tail. The two-tone tail is darker at the top and lighter at the bottom. The long, silky fur is brown or reddish brown on the back and gray on the belly. The base of the fur hair is dark gray. A black stripe on the back runs from the central back to the base of the tail. The ears are relatively large and rounded. The limbs are adapted for climbing. The second to fourth toes of the forelimbs have elongated claws. The first and fifth toes of the forelimbs are greatly reduced. In the hind limbs, the second to fourth toes are elongated, the fifth toe is long and can be opposed with a claw. The first toe is greatly reduced. Compared to the Brant climbing mouse, the head-torso length, the tail length and the skull are shorter.
Distribution, habitat, way of life
Vernay's climbing mouse is only known from the Chitau region in central Angola, where the type specimens were collected at an altitude of 1503 m. The site is located in an agricultural region that originally consisted of wet savannah. The way of life is not explored.
status
Vernays climbing mouse was included in the critically endangered category of the Red List of Threatened Species in 1996 . In 2004 the status was changed to “ data deficient ” . The species is only known from the 14 type specimens collected in 1925. The known distribution area is in an unprotected region. However, no information is available on hazards.
literature
- Fritz Dieterlen: Vernay's African Climbing Mouse. In: Jonathan Kingdon, Thomas M. Butynski, David CD Happold, Meredith Happold (Eds.): Mammals of Africa. Volume 3: Rodents, Hares and Rabbits. Bloomsbury, London et al. 2013, ISBN 978-1-4081-2254-9 , pp. 183-184.
- Ara Monadjem , Steven M. Goodman : Family Nesomyidae (Pouched Rat, Climbing Mice and Fat Mice) In: Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 7: Rodents II , Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2017, ISBN 978-84-16728-04-6 , p. 199
Web links
- Dendromus vernayi inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.3. Listed by: R. Kinnerley, 2016. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
Individual evidence
- ^ John Eric Hill, T. Donald Carter: Ten new rodents from Angola, Africa. American Museum Novitates, No. 913, 1937, p. 4
- ^ IUCN Red List 1996
- ^ João Crawford Cabral: The Angolan rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. An account of their distribution. Instituto de Investação Científica Tropical, Estudos, Ensaios e Documentos 161, 1998, pp. 1-222.