Strecker pocket rat
| Strecker pocket rat | ||||||||||||
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| Geomys streckeri | ||||||||||||
| Davis , 1943 |
The Strecker pocket rat ( Geomys streckeri ) is a little researched rodent from the genus of the lowland pocket rats ( Geomys ). It is endemic to southwest Texas .
Systematics
The Strecker pocket rat was originally described as Geomys personatus minor by William B. Davis in 1940 . However, since the name Geomys minor had already been assigned in 1922 by James W. Gidley for a fossil pocket rat species, Davis chose the replacement name Geomys streckeri in 1943 , since his originally chosen name had become homonymous with the invalid junior . The taxon is often considered a subspecies of the Texas pocket rat ( Geomys personatus ). Studies from 2000 and 2006 came to the result, however, that the Strecker pocket rat forms a sister taxon with the Attwater pocket rat ( Geomys attwateri ) and therefore support a species status. The type epithet honors the American naturalist John Kern Strecker (1875–1933).
features
The Strecker pocket rat reaches a head-trunk length of 120 to 190 mm, a tail length of 75 to 105 mm and a weight of 160 to 185 g. The males are usually larger than the females. The Strecker pocket rat is one of the smallest species in the Geomys genus . It has the typical lancet-shaped body shape of pocket rats and has fur pockets that are on the outside of the cheek and can be turned outwards. The fur is light yellow brown on top and lighter on the underside. The front of the upper incisors has a large central furrow surrounded by a smaller furrow along the inner edges of the teeth. The karyotype is 2n = 37.
distribution
The Strecker pocket rat occurs north of the Rio Grande in Dimmit County and Zavala County , but especially on Carrizo Creek between Crystal City and Carrizo Springs .
Habitat and way of life
The Strecker pocket rat inhabits sand deposits of fluvial origin along river beds in dry scrubland habitats. The way of life of this species is little explored. It likely feeds on roots, bulbs, stalks, leaves, and other plant material available in the vicinity of the building system. As with all pocket rats, the building system consists of a series of shallow supply tunnels that extend like spokes from a lower-lying central network that contains one or more nest chambers and several smaller chambers for food supplies and dung balls. The strecker pocket rat is likely to be active all day, with activity peaks during dusk and dawn. It does not hibernate and is active all year round. The Strecker pocket rat is likely a loner and aggressively defends its territory. The individuals probably rarely leave their burrows, which means that the size of the territory is defined by the size and extent of the building systems. Nothing is known about the reproductive behavior.
status
Threats to this species are not yet known, but their small range of 250 to 5000 square kilometers makes them susceptible to adverse habitat changes. According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , where it is considered a subspecies of Geomys personatus , it is considered vulnerable due to its vulnerability to the adverse effects of habitat changes from agriculture. At NatureServe it received the status " critically imperilled ".
literature
- Mark Hafner: Family Geomyidae (Pocket gophers). In: Don Ellis Wilson and Russell A. Mittermeier (Eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 6: Lagomorphs and Rodents 1 Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2016, ISBN 978-84-941892-3-4 , pp. 257-261
Individual evidence
- ^ William B. Davis: Distribution and variation of pocket gophers (genus Geomys) in the southwestern United States. Texas. Agricultural Experiment Station 590, 1940, pp. 1-38
- ↑ James W. Gidley: Preliminary report on fossil vertebrates of the San Pedro Valley, Arizona, with descriptions of new species of Rodentia and Lagomorpha. Professional Paper - United States Geological Survey, 1922, p. 123
- ^ William B. Davis: Substitute Name for Geomys personatus minor Davis. Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 24 (4), 1943, p. 508
- ↑ Ted W. Jolley, Rodney L. Honeycutt, Robert D. Bradley: Phylogenetic relationships of pocket gophers (genus Geomys) based on the mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene. Journal of Mammalogy 81, 2000, pp. 1025-1034.
- ↑ Philip D. Sudman, Jeffrey K. Wickliffe, Peggy Horner, Michael J. Smolen, John W. Bickham, Robert D. Bradley: Molecular systematics of pocket gophers of the genus Geomys. Journal of Mammalogy 87, 2006, pp. 668-676.
- ^ Geomys personatus in the IUCN Red List.
- ↑ Entry on NatureServe