Rupp climbing mouse

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Rupp climbing mouse
Systematics
Subordination : Mouse relatives (Myomorpha)
Superfamily : Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family : Nesomyidae
Subfamily : Tree mice (Dendromurinae)
Genre : African climbing mice ( Dendromus )
Type : Rupp climbing mouse
Scientific name
Dendromus ruppi
Dieterlen , 2009

The Rupp climbing mouse ( Dendromus ruppi ) is a little researched rodent from the genus of the African climbing mice ( Dendromus ). The type epithet honors the zoologist Hans Rupp, who collected the holotype in 1978.

features

The Rupp climbing mouse has a head-trunk length of 63 to 82 mm, a tail length of 91 to 115 mm, an ear length of 13 to 18 mm, a hind foot length of 18 to 20 mm and a weight of 8 to 15 g. The Rupp climbing mouse is a small species with a very long prehensile tail. The two-tone tail is darker at the top and lighter at the bottom. The long soft fur is brown or reddish brown on top and white with a dark gray hair base on the belly. The base of the back fur hair is dark gray. A black eel line runs from the neck to the base of the tail . The ears are relatively large and rounded. The limbs are adapted for climbing. The second to fourth toes of the forelimbs have elongated claws. The first and fifth toes of the forelimbs are greatly reduced. In the hind limbs, the second to fourth toes are elongated, the fifth toe is long and can be opposed with a claw. The first toe is greatly reduced.

distribution

The Rupp climbing mouse is so far only known from the Imatong Mountains , in particular from the Kinyeti and the Didinga Mountains, in the southwest of South Sudan .

Habitat and way of life

The Rupp climbing mouse lives in open grasslands, swamps and cultivated land at altitudes between 1800 and 1900 m. A female caught in April 1978 had four embryos. More is not known about the way of life.

status

In 2016, the Rupp climbing mouse was included in the “ data deficient ” category of the Red List of Threatened Species , as very little is known about their distribution, habitat requirements, threats or population size. There are considerations to convert the Imatong Central Forest Reserve into a national park . However, it is unknown whether this species occurs in this reserve.

literature

  • Fritz Dieterlen: Climbing mice of the genus Dendromus (Nesomyidae, Dendromurinae) in Sudan and Ethiopia, with the description of a new species. Bonn Zoological Contributions 56, 2009, pp. 185–200
  • Ara Monadjem , Steven M. Goodman : Family Nesomyidae (Pouched Rat, Climbing Mice and Fat Mice) In: Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 7: Rodents II , Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2017, ISBN 978-84-16728-04-6 , p. 198

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