Brachyuromys ramirohitra, Forsyth Major, 1896

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Nesomyidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 156-203 : 191

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6600357

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6600245

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03993828-FFFA-0F5E-FFF8-F5F0C5DBFCE6

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Brachyuromys ramirohitra
status

 

24. View Plate 8: Nesomyidae

Large Short-tailed Rat

Brachyuromys ramirohitra View in CoL

French: Grand Ramirohitra / German: Grol 3e MadagaskarKurzschwanzratte / Spanish: Rata de cola corta grande

Other common names: Greater Short-tailed Rat, Gregarious Short-tailed Rat

Taxonomy. Brachyuromys ramirohitra Forsyth Major, 1896 View in CoL ,

“ Ampitambe forest , Betsimisaraka country (on the border of N.E. Betsileo), 6 hours S.E. of Fandriana.”

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. Endemic to E Madagascar. View Figure

Descriptive notes. Head-body 140-165 mm, tail 84-110 mm; weight 64-117 g. Muzzle of the Large Short-tailed Rat is short. Fur is soft and dense, relatively short, and grayish brown, with some rufous on dorsum and grayish beige on venter. Ears are short, velvety toward tips, and largely hairless toward bases. Dorsum oftail is black, and venter is distinctly lighter, with fine metallic gray sparse fur. Legs are short, and feet are relatively large.

Habitat. Eastern humid lowland to montane forest at elevations of 1210-1960 m. Large Short-tailed Rats are widely scattered and have been captured on ground and at openings of tree-root complexes in upper mossy forest.

Food and Feeding. The Large Short-tailed Rat is presumed to be herbivorous.

Breeding. Female Large Short-tailed Rats have three pairs of mammae and litters of up to two young.

Activity patterns. The Large Short-tailed Rat is cathemeral. Individuals have been trapped in early morning and toward dusk, but also at night. They are presumed to live in underground burrow systems.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Large Short-tailed Rat is largely forest-dwelling and is known from less than ten localities in eastern humid forests of Madagascar. It is preyed on by Fosas (Cryptoproctaferox). Given continued declines in forest cover in this region, its mediumand long-term future is uncertain.

Bibliography. Bennie et al. (2014), Goodman & Carleton (1996), Goodman, Langrand & Rasolonandrasana (1997), Goodman, Soarimalala et al. (2013), Jansa & Carleton (2003), Soarimalala & Goodman (2011).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Rodentia

Family

Nesomyidae

Genus

Brachyuromys

Loc

Brachyuromys ramirohitra

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr 2017
2017
Loc

Brachyuromys ramirohitra

Forsyth Major 1896
1896
GBIF Dataset (for parent article) Darwin Core Archive (for parent article) View in SIBiLS Plain XML RDF