Red-headed shrew pouch rat
| Red-headed shrew pouch rat | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Red-headed shrew pouch rat ( Monodelphis scalops ) |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Monodelphis scalops | ||||||||||||
| ( Thomas , 1888) |
The red-headed shrew pouch rat ( Monodelphis scalops ) occurs in southern Brazil and in the extreme northeast of Argentina. The distribution area extends from Espírito Santo in the north to Santa Catarina in the south and from there in a narrow strip to the Argentine province of Misiones .
description
The red-headed shrew pouch-rat has a head body length of 6.3 to 16.3 cm, has a 3.7 to 8.3 cm long tail and weighs 23 to 90 g. The head, fore and hind legs, and large areas of the trunk are reddish in color. The center of the back is olive gray. In females and young animals, three stripes, which are only indistinctly visible, run along the back. Old males no longer have these back stripes. Dark circles under the eyes or a dark stripe in the middle of the head are missing. The peritoneum is olive-gray. The tail is hairy only at the base and is reddish like the trunk. Like probably all shrew pouch rats, the females do not have a pouch. The number of teats is unknown. The karyotype of the red-headed shrew pouch rat is unknown.
Way of life
The red-headed shrew pouch rat lives in the Mata Atlântica , the coastal rainforest of Brazil at altitudes of up to 1,400 meters. So far nothing is known about the behavior, nutrition, reproduction and activity patterns of the animals.
Systematics
The red-headed shrew pouch rat was first scientifically described in 1888 by the British zoologist Oldfield Thomas under the scientific name Didelphys scalops . Today it belongs to the genus Monodelphis , with over 20 species one of the most species-rich genus of the opossum. Monodelphis theresa , described in 1922 by O. Thomas, is regarded in the marsupial volume of the Handbook of the Mammals of the World as a synonym description of M. scalops , since the characteristics given for this species are covered by the characteristics of the red-headed shrew rat.
status
The IUCN considers the red-headed shrew pouch rat to be harmless ( least concern ). The population is decreasing, however, and a continuous decline is recorded for the forest areas in their area of distribution.
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 152.
- ↑ Monodelphis scalops in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2016 Posted by: Brito, D. & Pavan, S., 2016. Accessed January 19, 2020th