Coastal Chipmunk

Coastal Chipmunk
	Coastal chipmunk ( Tamiops maritimus )
Systematics
Order :	Rodents (Rodentia)
Subordination :	Squirrel relatives (Sciuromorpha)
Family :	Squirrel (Sciuridae)
Subfamily :	Squirrel (Callosciurinae)
Genre :	Tree Chipmunk ( Tamiops )
Type :	Coastal Chipmunk
Scientific name
	Tamiops maritimus
	( Bonhote , 1900)

The coastal chipmunk ( Tamiops maritimus ) is a type of squirrel from the tree chipmunk genus ( Tamiops ). It occurs in the southern People's Republic of China as well as in Laos , Vietnam and Cambodia .

features

The coastal chipmunk reaches a head-torso length of about 10.5 to 13.4 centimeters with a weight of about 54 to 57 grams. The tail becomes 8 to 11.5 centimeters long and is thus slightly shorter than the rest of the body. The hind foot becomes 25 to 30 millimeters long, the ear length is 9 to 17 millimeters. The back fur of the animals is short, the basic color is olive brown. There are three darker vertical stripes on it, which are separated by lighter stripes. The middle light stripes are only indistinct, the outer ones more clearly defined, but less pronounced than with other Tamiops species. There is a pale stripe below the eye, which, like the Swinhoe chipmunk ( Tamiops swinhoei ), has no contact with the light stripe on the back. The ventral side is sand-colored.

1	·	0	·	2	·	3	= 22
1	·	0	·	1	·	3	= 22

Tooth formula of the beautiful squirrel

The skull has a total length of 36 to 38 millimeters and corresponds in structure to that of other species of the genus. All species of the genus have a a maxillary per half incisor tooth formed incisor (incisor) to which a tooth gap ( diastema follows). This is followed by two premolars and three molars . In contrast, only one premolar is formed in the lower jaw. In total, the animals have a set of 22 teeth.

The genome of the species consists of a diploid chromosome set of 2n = 38 chromosomes.

distribution

The coastal chipmunk occurs in the southern and eastern People's Republic of China and Taiwan as well as in Laos , Vietnam and Cambodia east of the Mekong . In the People's Republic of China, the area includes parts of the provinces of Fujian , Guangxi and the south of Yunnan, as well as the island of Hainan . According to other sources, it also occurs in Guangxi and Guangdong .

Way of life

The coastal chipmunk lives in China mainly in the lowland areas in tree populations of its range, also in secondary forests and gardens. It occurs mainly in two forest types, on the one hand in evergreen deciduous forests with oak and laurel stands and Pinus massoniana as well as in secondary mixed forests. In Taiwan, on the other hand, it is mainly found at altitudes between 2000 and 3000 meters. It is largely tree-living, between the trees it moves with wide jumps.

The squirrels feed mainly on young buds, fruits and insects. As a special feature, it is able to obtain nectar from the flowers of the ginger plant Alpinia kwangsiensis and for this it comes down from the trees and bites the calyxes on the underside. This prevents the flowers from being pollinated, which reduces the reproduction of the plants by around 20%. Communication takes place through typical calls that sound like “cluck” or “chirrup”.

Systematics

The coastal chipmunk is classified as an independent species within the genus of the tree chipmunk ( Tamiops ), which consists of four species. The first scientific description comes from J. Lewis Bonhote from 1900, who described the species using individuals from the Fujian Province in China. Various authors see the coastal chipmunk as a subspecies of the swinhoe chipmunk ( Tamiops swinhoei ).

Within the species, four subspecies are distinguished together with the nominate form :

Tamiops m. maritimus : nominate form, occurs in southeast China and Taiwan. Compared to other species, this form is more monochrome and grayer. The middle back stripe is short and hardly visible. The cloudy white side stripes are narrow and short.
Tamiops m. hainanus : The subspecies occurs on the island of Hainan as well as in Laos and Cambodia. It is slightly larger than the nominate form.
Tamiops m. moi : from southern Vietnam. It corresponds to Tamiops m. hainanus , is a little bigger and the dark stripes on the back are reddish in color.
Tamiops m. monticolus : in the higher elevations of the more western distribution areas of the species. The middle dorsal stripe is clearer than in the other forms and extends to the base of the tail, the light stripes are also distinct, broad and longer.

In contrast, Smith & Yan Xie 2009 distinguish four subspecies for China alone. In addition to the aforementioned Tamiops m. maritimus and Tamiops m. hainanus they name T. m. bopinglingensis from Fujian and T. m. formosanus in Taiwan.

Status, threat and protection

The coastal chipmunk is classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified by the large distribution area and the frequent occurrence of the species, even in heavily modified habitats. There are no known threats to the existence of this species.

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Maritime Striped Squirrel. 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. 188.

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 195-196. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1

^ Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Genus Tamiops. 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. 187 ff.

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d Tamiops maritimus in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014.3. Listed by: JW Duckworth, D. Lunde, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2015.
↑ ^a ^b Tamiops maritimus In: Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): 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

Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 195-196. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Maritime Striped Squirrel. 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. 188.

Web links

Tamiops maritimus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014.3. Listed by: JW Duckworth, D. Lunde, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2015.

[Smith_&_Yan_Xie_2009-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Maritime Striped Squirrel. 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. 188.

[Thorington_et_al._2012-2] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 195-196. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1

[Smith_&_Yan_Xie_2009_Tamiops-3] Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Genus Tamiops. 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. 187 ff.