Lessa Comb rat
| Lessa Comb rat | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Ctenomys lessai | ||||||||||||
| Gardner , Salazar-Bravo & Cook , 2014 |
The Lessa crested rat ( Ctenomys lessai ) is a type of crested rat . The species, which was first scientifically described in 2014, is only known from its first location in Lluthu Pampa in central Bolivia .
features
The Lessa comb rat reaches a total length of 17.7 to 26.5 centimeters and a tail length of on average 4.4 to 7.9 centimeters. The average ear length is 4 to 8 millimeters and the average hind foot length is 27 to 37 millimeters. It is therefore a comparatively small to medium-sized species of the genus. The back fur is dense, thin-haired and soft. It is olive-brown to sand-colored, the ventral side is cinnamon-brown or, in some individuals, olive-brown-sand-colored. There is an indistinct, clove-brown stripe on the back and most animals have a light, cinnamon-colored spot in front of and under the ear. The tail is short and covered with dark olive-brown fur, becoming lighter towards the end of the tail.
The skull has a length of 33.0 to 41.9 millimeters and a width in the area of the zygomatic arches of 23.1 to 28.0 millimeters. It is relatively delicate, the interocular region has rounded edges and the zygomatic arches are broad and reach the same width as the ear canal . The lower jaw is delicate and the mastoid process (processus mastoideus) of the temporal bone is barely visible. The upper incisors are coated with a pale yellow-ocher-colored to ivory-colored enamel .
The karyotype consists of a chromosome set of 2n = 46 chromosomes (FN = 64).
distribution
The Lessa crested rat is so far only known from Lluthu Pampa in the Cochabamba department in central Bolivia and lives at altitudes of around 2500 to 2750 meters.
Fleas of the species Ectinorus galeanus and Sphinctopsylla inca were identified on the individuals that were used to first describe the species .
Way of life
The habitats of the Lessa crested rat are characterized by the grasslands of the high elevations of the distribution area. Like all other crested rats, it lives on the ground and digs in the ground. No information is available about their way of life.
Systematics
The Lessa crested rat is classified as an independent species within the genus of crested rats ( Ctenomys ), which consists of about 70 species. The first scientific description of the species comes from Scott Lyell Gardner , Jorge Salazar-Bravo and Joseph A. Cook in 2014. They described the species on the basis of molecular biological and anatomical features. The species was named after the biologist Enrique P. Lessa , who is considered an expert on South American mammals and especially the comb rats and is a good friend of the authors. Originally the species was called Ctenomys "llathu" by Cook and Lessa .
Apart from the nominate form, no further subspecies are distinguished within the species .
Status, threat and protection
The Lessa comb rat is not listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) so far (as of January 2019).
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Scott Lyell Gardner, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, Joseph A. Cook: New Species of Ctenomys Blainville 1826 (Rodentia: Ctenomyidae) from the Lowlands and Central Valleys of Bolivia. Faculty Publications on the Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology, Special Publications, Museum of Texas Tech University 62, 2014; Pp. 1-34; Full text .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Lessa's Tuco-tuco. In: TRO Freitas: Family Ctenomyidae In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (editor): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6) Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016, p. 515. ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .
- ↑ Elisa Pucu, Marcela Lareschi, Scott L. Gardner: Bolivian Ectoparasites: A Survey of the Fleas of Ctenomys (Rodentia: Ctenomyidae). Comparative Parasitology 81 (1), 2014; Pp. 114-118. doi : 10.1654 / 4655.1 .
literature
- Lessa's Tuco-tuco. In: TRO Freitas: Family Ctenomyidae In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (editor): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6) Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016, p. 515. ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .
- Scott Lyell Gardner, Jorge Salazar-Bravo, Joseph A. Cook: New Species of Ctenomys Blainville 1826 (Rodentia: Ctenomyidae) from the Lowlands and Central Valleys of Bolivia. Faculty Publications on the Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology, Special Publications, Museum of Texas Tech University 62, 2014; Pp. 1-34; Full text .