Namaqua beach diggers

Namaqua beach diggers
	Namaqua beach burrows ( Bathyergus janetta )
Systematics
Order :	Rodents (Rodentia)
Subordination :	Porcupine relatives (Hystricomorpha)
Partial order :	Hystricognathi
Family :	Sand graves (Bathyergidae)
Genre :	Beach graves ( Bathyergus )
Type :	Namaqua beach diggers
Scientific name
	Bathyergus janetta
	Thomas & Schwann , 1904

The Namaqua beach graves ( Bathyergus Janetta ) is a rodent species from the family of blesmol (Bathyergidae) and the genus therein the beach graves ( Bathyergus ) consisting of two ways. Like other species of the family, it is adapted to an underground and burrowing way of life. The species occurs in southern Africa in an area from southern Namibia to western South Africa .

features

The Namaqua beach digger reaches a head-trunk length of 17.0 to 23.5 centimeters for the males and 13.1 to 18.1 centimeters for the females. The weight is 108 to 255 grams for the males and 87 to 272 grams for the females. The tail is about 17 to 24 millimeters long for a sand digger, which is comparatively long. The species is thus somewhat smaller than the Cape beach grave ( Bathyergus suillus ). The fur on the back is gray to silver gray with a black stripe from the head to the torso. The ventral side is lighter silver gray. The tail is bushy hairy. In the area of the eyes and ears, the Namaqua beach digger has only a few individual hairs. The feet are pink with short bristles. The chromosome set consists of 2n = 54 (FN = 104) chromosomes.

distribution

The Namaqua beach grave occurs in southern Africa in the area of Namaqualand in an area from southern Namibia to western South Africa in the province of Northern Cape .

Way of life

The habitats are typically found in sandy and dry sand areas and dunes in the coastal area. Like other sand graves, this species also lives largely underground. With the help of their claws, the animals create burrows with a total length of about 70 to 165 meters in an area of 430 to 1200 m ² . The maximum digging activity occurs during the rainy seasons. They live individually and are territorial, and the individuals can also colonize several corridor systems. The animals feed on herbivorous diets , where the food consists primarily of perennial geophytes and underground tubers, and they do not drink standing water. The breeding season takes place in the rainy season from July to September. The females have one to seven young after a gestation period of at least 52 days.

Systematics

The Namaqua beach grave is classified as an independent species within the beach grave ( Bathyergus ), which consists of two types. The first scientific description comes from Oldfield Thomas and Harold Schwann from 1904 under the name Bathyergus janetta , which is still valid today . It was based on a female individual from the region around Port Nolloth in South Africa, which was made available to the British Museum by Charles Dunell Rudd and CHB Grant. At times the species was assigned to the Cape beach digger ( Bathyergus suillus ) as a subspecies, but it was established as an independent species due to genetic differences.

Apart from the nominate form, no further subspecies are distinguished within the species .

Status, threat and protection

The Namaqua beach grave is classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), although the distribution area is less than 20,000 km ² . This is justified by the fact that it only occurs in areas that are generally not accessible and protected. The expansion of diamond mines in the coastal area poses a potential threat to its existence.

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h R. L. Honeycutt: Namaqua Dune Mole-rat - Bathyergus janetta. In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (editors): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6), Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016; P. 367. ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .

↑ ^a ^b Bathyergus janetta in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.2. Posted by: S. Maree, 2008. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
↑ Oldfield Thomas, Harold Schwann: On a Collection of Mammals from British Namaqualand presented to the National Museum by Mr. CD Rudd. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1904; Pp. 171-183. ( Digitized version ).
↑ ^a ^b ^c Bathyergus janetta . 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

RL Honeycutt: Namaqua Dune Mole-rat - Bathyergus janetta. In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (editors): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6), Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016; P. 367. ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .
Nigel C. Bennett: Bathyergus janetta - Namaqua Dune Mole-Rat In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume III. Rodents, Hares and Rabbits. Bloomsbury, London 2013, pp. 644-646; ISBN 978-1-4081-2253-2 .

Web links

Commons : Namaqua beach graves ( Bathyergus janetta ) - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Bathyergus janetta inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.2. Posted by: S. Maree, 2008. Retrieved October 20, 2017.

[HMW_2016-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h R. L. Honeycutt: Namaqua Dune Mole-rat - Bathyergus janetta. In: Don E. Wilson, TE Lacher, Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (editors): Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1. (HMW, Volume 6), Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016; P. 367. ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 .