Japanese pointed mole rat

Japanese pointed mole rat
	Japanese pointed mole rat ( Urotrichus talpoides )
Systematics
Order :	Insect eater (Eulipotyphla)
Family :	Moles (Talpidae)
Subfamily :	Old World Moles (Talpinae)
Tribe :	Japanese pointed mullet (Urotrichini)
Genre :	Japanese pointed mulle
Type :	Japanese pointed mole rat
Scientific name of the genus
	Urotrichus
	Temminck , 1841
Scientific name of the species
	Urotrichus talpoides
	Temminck, 1841

The Japanese pointed mole ( Urotrichus talpoides ) is a mammal from the mole family (Talpidae) and the only species of the genus Urotrichus monotypical . The distribution area is in Japan on the islands of Honshū , Shikoku , Kyūshū , Dogo and northern Tsushima .

features

The species is largely similar to its relative, the true pointed mole rat ( Dymecodon pilirostris ), which has a rather shrew-like appearance. The Japanese pointed mole rat grows only slightly larger, has a slightly less dense fur, a thicker snout, wider forefeet, a club-shaped, shorter but thicker tail that reaches about a third of the head-torso length and is covered by longer hair (about 6 up to 9 mm in the middle and 10 to 20 mm at the tip of the tail). The skull is stronger than that of the true pointed mullet, the snout is broad and short. The first incisor in the upper jaw is very large and sharply pointed, the second is only half as long as the first. The upper canines are very small, the single-pointed upper premolars become smaller and smaller from the first to the third. The tips of the lower incisors are curved backwards.

The coat color varies from almost black in some forms from northern distribution areas to chestnut brown in southern occurrences. The winter coat is darker than the summer coat. Urotrichus talpoides reaches a weight of 14.5 to 25.5 g, with a head-trunk length of 8.9 to 10.4 cm and a tail length of 2.7 to 3.7 cm. The tooth formula is 2-1-4-3 / 1-1-3-3 = 36. Mainly because of the different tooth formulas - the Japanese pointed mullet has one pair of teeth less in the lower jaw - the true pointed mullet and Japanese pointed mole rat were assigned to different genera.

Way of life

The Japanese pointed mole rat creates its duct systems just below the surface of the earth, but occasionally also goes to the surface and has even been observed climbing on low bushes. It occurs in forests and grasslands outside the mountains (the true pointed mole rat lives in higher elevations) and feeds mainly on insects, worms and centipedes. The breeding season extends from March to May. Two to four young are born per litter.

Systematics

Traditionally, the following subspecies are distinguished:

Urotrichus talpoides adversus Thomas , 1908
Urotrichus talpoides centralis Thomas , 1908
Urotrichus talpoides hondoensis Thomas , 1918
Urotrichus talpoides minutus Tokuda , 1932
Urotrichus talpoides talpoides Temminck , 1841

On the basis of a pericentric inversion , a reversal of a section in a chromosome , two forms can be distinguished, the range of which is separated by the Kurobe and Fuji rivers in central Honshu.

swell

↑ ^a ^b Hisashi Abe: Classification and Biology of Japanese Insectivora (Mammalia). In: Journal of the Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University. Vol. 55, No. 3, 1967, ISSN 0020-1804 , pp. 192–265, here p. 254, online (PDF; 5.4 MB) ( Memento of the original from November 9, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2

↑ ^a ^b Akio Shinohara, Kevin L. Campbell, Hitoshi Suzuki: An evolutionary view on the Japanese talpids based on nucleotide sequences. In: Mammal Study. Vol. 30, Supplement 1, 2005, ISSN 1343-4152 , pp. S19-S24, doi : 10.3106 / 1348-6160 (2005) 30 [S19: AEVOTJ] 2.0.CO; 2 .

^ R. David Stone: Eurasian Insectivores and Tree Shrews. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. Union Internationale pour la Conservation de la Nature et de ses Ressources, Gland 1995, ISBN 2-831-70062-0 , Google Books .

↑ Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): Mammal Species of the World . A taxonomic and geographic Reference . 3. Edition. 2 volumes. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 (English, Urotrichus ).

Web links

Commons : Japanese pointed mole rat ( Urotrichus talpoides ) - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Urotrichus talpoides inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: Abe, H. & Ishii, N., 2008. Retrieved December 19, 2013.

[Abe-1] Hisashi Abe: Classification and Biology of Japanese Insectivora (Mammalia). In: Journal of the Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University. Vol. 55, No. 3, 1967, ISSN 0020-1804 , pp. 192–265, here p. 254, online (PDF; 5.4 MB) ( Memento of the original from November 9, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2

[Shinohara-2] Akio Shinohara, Kevin L. Campbell, Hitoshi Suzuki: An evolutionary view on the Japanese talpids based on nucleotide sequences. In: Mammal Study. Vol. 30, Supplement 1, 2005, ISSN 1343-4152 , pp. S19-S24, doi : 10.3106 / 1348-6160 (2005) 30 [S19: AEVOTJ] 2.0.CO; 2 .

[Stone-3] R. David Stone: Eurasian Insectivores and Tree Shrews. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. Union Internationale pour la Conservation de la Nature et de ses Ressources, Gland 1995, ISBN 2-831-70062-0 , Google Books .

[Wilson-4] Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): Mammal Species of the World . A taxonomic and geographic Reference . 3. Edition. 2 volumes. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 (English, Urotrichus ).