Paraguay fat-tailed pouch rat
| Paraguay fat-tailed pouch rat | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Thylamys macrurus | ||||||||||||
| ( Olfers , 1818) |
The Paraguayan fat- tailed rat ( Thylamys macrurus ) occurs in Paraguay along the Río Paraguay and in the adjacent south of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul .
description
The animals reach a head trunk length of 10.1 to 13.5 cm, have a 13.2 to 15.4 cm long tail and reach a weight of 30 to 57 g. This makes the species the largest of the fat-tailed pouch rats. The tail is usually 120% of the length of the head. As usual with fat-tailed rats, the hair is banded with different color zones. The 9-10 mm long hair on the back has a gray base, followed by a brownish zone, then a cream-colored area and dark tips. The back is colored gray or gray-brown on the outside, the head and the sides of the body are also gray but lighter. The peritoneum is cream-colored to whitish. The hair on the belly is 5 to 6 mm long. The eyes are surrounded by narrow dark rings. The ears are large, hairless and of a solid dark brown color. The outside of the front and rear legs are gray, the inside is whitish. Front and rear paws are relatively large and whitish. The females do not have a pouch. The number of teats is unknown. The Paraguayan fat-tailed rat karyotype consists of a chromosome set of 2n = 14 chromosomes (FN = 20).
Habitat and way of life
The Paraguayan fat-tailed rat is found in subtropical moist forests, in tree savannahs and in the semi-arid, southwestern cerrado . It is ground-dwelling, probably nocturnal, is considered adaptable and is not tied to a specific biotope. So far, no information is available about their activity patterns and diet. Since the majority of the juveniles were caught during the rainy season from November to February, it is assumed that the opossums multiply in the rainy season.
Systematics
The Paraguay fat-tailed pouch rat was first described in 1818 by the German scientist Ignaz von Olfers under the name Didelphis macrura . Today it is placed in the genus of the fat- tailed pouch rats ( Thylamys ).
status
The IUCN estimates the population of the Paraguayan fat-tailed rat as potentially endangered (Near Threatened). Their habitat is severely affected by deforestation and conversion to arable land. Only a few specimens of the species are known from Paraguay.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e Diego Astúa: Family Didelphidae (Opossums). in Don E. Wilson , Russell A. Mittermeier : Handbook of the Mammals of the World - Volume 5. Monotremes and Marsupials. Lynx Editions, 2015, ISBN 978-84-96553-99-6 . Page 178.
- ↑ Thylamys macrurus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2015 Posted by: de la Sancha, N. & Teta, P., 2014. Accessed March 15, 2020th