Senegal Gundi

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Senegal Gundi
Systematics
Order : Rodents (Rodentia)
Subordination : Porcupine relatives (Hystricomorpha)
Partial order : Ctenodactylomorphi
Family : Comb fingers (Ctenodactylidae)
Genre : Felovia
Type : Senegal Gundi
Scientific name of the  genus
Felovia
Lataste , 1886
Scientific name of the  species
Felovia uae
Lataste, 1886
Distribution area of ​​the Senegal Gundis (red).

The Senegal Gundi ( Felovia uae ), also called Felou comb finger , is a little-researched north-west African rodent species found in northeast Senegal, central Mauritania, and west Mali. The endangerment level of the species is not known, the IUCN lists it under "insufficient data" (data deficient).

features

The animals reach a head-trunk length of 16.9 to 19 cm, have a 6.7 to 8 cm long tail and weigh up to 188 g. Like all Gundis, the Senegal Gundi has a compact body with thick fur, short ears, short legs, four-toed feet and a bristle comb on the two inner toes of the hind feet. It can be distinguished from other Gundi species by the strongly grooved upper incisors and the only slightly expanded tympanic bladder . Compared to the Speke comb finger ( Pectinator spekei ) it has a shorter, flatter head. The bushy tail is longer than that of the other Gundi species with the exception of the tail of the Speke comb finger.

Way of life

The Senegal-Gundi occurs in the western Sahara in semi-deserts with relatively heavy rainfall (more than 600 mm per year) and lives there in wadis and hills made of sandstone . In the distribution area the conditions are less hostile to life than in the distribution area of ​​the Val-Gundis ( Ctenodactylus vali ) and the Longhair-Gundis ( Massoutiera mzabi ). Senegal-Gundis live in small family groups and share territories of around 3000 m² with other groups. In their territories they have numerous hiding places and, thanks to their flat, highly flexible body, can also use crevices with an entrance width of only 2.5 cm. The population density is relatively high in Mali with up to 25 individuals per hectare, but lower in Mauritania. Senegal-Gundis are vocal and give alarm calls for a period of up to half an hour when a predator is spotted.

The animals are herbivores and feed on, among other things, leaves of the legume Tephrosia marsieensis , dry grass and seeds. The Senegalese gundi is the only species of gundi that has been observed drinking water. They can tolerate higher temperatures than other Gundi species and have been observed sunbathing on rocks with a surface temperature of 38 ° C. This is probably due to the fact that they eat plants with a higher water content. The reproduction is hardly known. Births are believed to take place from mid-December to January. So far only one young animal has been found per litter.

literature

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