Small Himalayan white-bellied rat

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Small Himalayan white-bellied rat
Systematics
Family : Long-tailed mice (Muridae)
Subfamily : Old World Mice (Murinae)
Tribe : Rattini
Dacnomys group
Genre : White-bellied rats ( Niviventer )
Type : Small Himalayan white-bellied rat
Scientific name
Niviventer eha
( Wroughton , 1916)

The small Himalayan white-bellied rat ( Niviventer eha ) is a rodent from the genus of the white-bellied rats ( Niviventer ) within the old world mice (Murinae). It occurs in southern China , Nepal , northeast India and northern Myanmar .

features

The small Himalayan white-bellied rat reaches a head-trunk length of 11.2 to 13.0 centimeters with a tail of 16.5 to 19.5 centimeters in length . The rear foot length is about 39 to 49 millimeters, the ear length 22 to 29 millimeters. The skull has a total length of 37 to 39 millimeters. Accordingly, it is a small species of the genus with a comparatively long tail.

The back fur is long, soft and without bristle parts, it is brownish-orange in color. The sides of the body are a little lighter orange and the abdomen is grayish-white to smoky gray in color with individual hairs that are gray at the base and whitish-gray at the tip. The ears are dark brown and have conspicuously brown-black tufts of hair on the front. On the face, the animals can also have an indistinct, brownish coat of paint from the vibrissae , not to the nose, to the eye ring. The tail reaches a length of about 1.5 times the length of the head and trunk. It is not clearly two-tone with a brown-black top and a slightly lighter underside; the back of the tail consists of longer hair and forms a distinct small tassel. The hind feet are very slender and the tops of the hands and feet are dark brown on top, the fingers and toes are brownish white. The females have three pairs of teats , one in the armpit, one in the chest and one in the lumbar area.

distribution

The small Himalayan white-bellied rat is found in southern China , Nepal , northeast India and northern Myanmar . In China she lives in the south of Xizang and in western and central Yunnan , in India in West Bengal , Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh . There is no evidence for Bhutan , but an occurrence is possible.

Way of life

The small Himalayan white-bellied rat lives mainly in cool, damp, temperate forest areas that are characterized by conifers or rhododendrons . The altitude distribution is between 2500 and 3500 meters. The animals live mainly on the ground and feed on insects and insect larvae in large proportions, as well as fruits and bulbs and roots rich in starch.

Systematics

The small Himalayan 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 British zoologist Robert Charles Wroughton , who described the species in 1916 using individuals from Sikkim in India from an altitude of 2680 meters. Morphologically it is closely related to the Brahma white-bellied rat ( Niviventer brahma ), but this relationship should be examined more closely.

Status, threat and protection

The Lesser Himalayan 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 and the assumed frequent occurrence of the species. Potential threats are not known for China, in South Asia it is sometimes hunted as a source of meat.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d e Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith: Smoke-Bellied 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. 267-268.
  2. ↑ a b c Niviventer eha in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.2. Posted by: S. Molur, 2008. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  3. ↑ a b Niviventer eha . 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: Smoke-Bellied 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. 267-268.

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