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- Dendromus insignis Thomas, 1903
Dendromus insignis Thomas, 1903
Order: Rodentia > Family: Nesomyidae > Genus: Dendromus > Species: Dendromus insignis Thomas, 1903
Common Name: Montane African Climbing Mouse [English]
Type Description
Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 7, 12:341.
Type Locality
Kenya, Nandi.
Measurements
Total length: 143-197 mm
Head and body: 69-100 mm
Tail length: 85-113 mm
Hindfoot length: 18-22 mm
Ear length: 11-15 mm
Weight: 11-21 g
Head and body: 69-100 mm
Tail length: 85-113 mm
Hindfoot length: 18-22 mm
Ear length: 11-15 mm
Weight: 11-21 g
Description
These small rodents are excellent climbers and are noted for the black stripe (sometimes faint...rub the back from front to rear to see the stripe more easily), long tail and three fingers on the front foot. Look for an opposable toe on the back foot.
Distribution
Distributed throughout Africa from the Sudan and Ethiopia to the Cameroons down to South Africa, Dendromus insignis is found in various types of tall grasses in a wide range of ecological zones, including alpine and subalpine zones where it has adapted to the wet and grassy habitats. (Kingdon, 1984, 1997)
Key References
1. Kingdon, J. 1984. East African mammals: An atlas of evolution in Africa. (Hares and Rodents). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 2B:528-535.
2. Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon field guide to African mammals, AP Natural World Academic Press, Harcourt Brace & Company, San Diego, p. 197.
3. Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth ed. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2:1344-1346, 1485-1488.
4. Swynnerton, G. H., and R. W. Hayman. 1951. A checklist of the land mammals of the Tanganyika Territory and the Zanzibar Protectorate. Journal of the East African Natural History Society, 20(6):274-392.
2. Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon field guide to African mammals, AP Natural World Academic Press, Harcourt Brace & Company, San Diego, p. 197.
3. Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth ed. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2:1344-1346, 1485-1488.
4. Swynnerton, G. H., and R. W. Hayman. 1951. A checklist of the land mammals of the Tanganyika Territory and the Zanzibar Protectorate. Journal of the East African Natural History Society, 20(6):274-392.