Mus (Nannomys) sorella Thomas 1909

Mus (Nannomys) sorella Thomas 1909, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 8, 4: 548.

Type Locality: W Kenya, Mt Elgon, Kirui, 6000 ft (1830 m).

Vernacular Names: Thomas's Mouse.

Synonyms: Mus (Nannomys) acholi Heller 1911; Mus (Nannomys) wamae Heller 1911 .

Distribution: Documented by specimens from E Cameroon, EC Angola, NE and SE Dem. Rep. Congo, Uganda, Kenya, and N Tanzania (F. Petter, 1981 b; Verheyen, 1965 a; specimens examined in AMNH, BMNH, CM, and USNM); range limits unresolved.

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Subgenus Nannomys . Closest relatives are M. baoulei, M. goundae, M. neavei, and M. oubanguii; F. Petter (1981 b) placed these (except M. baoulei) together in the M. sorella group. He also recognized wamae and acholi as species in the sorella complex, but after examining holotypes and other specimens we agree with Verheyen (1965 a), who united them with M. sorella . There are at least two morphologically distinct species in the group, M. sorella and M. neavei (see that account), but the nature of their phylogenetic relationship to other forms in this complex needs to be assessed by critical systematic review. Reidentification of museum specimens might also help resolve boundaries of geographic ranges. The specimens from Angola, for example, were originally identified by Hill and Carter (1941) as M. bella . The southern African range mapped by de Graaff (1997 m) reflects M. neavi and not M. sorella .