Kilonzo's Brush Furred Rat

biology_ecology

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Little is known, but populations of Kilonzo’s Brush-furred Rats decline from dry to rainy seasons.

Muridae

conservation

Status and Conservation. Not yet assessed on The IUCN Red List. Kilonzo’s Brush-furred Rat is rarely captured.

Muridae

description

Descriptive notes. Head — body 115 - 139 mm, tail 50 - 94 mm, ear 15 - 5 = 21 - 7 mm, hindfoot 19 - 24 mm; weight 40 - 74 g. Kilonzo’s Brush-furred Ratis externally similar to the Buff-spotted Brush-furred Rat (L. flavopunctatus). Dorsum is speckled dark reddish brown, and venter is pale brown or cinnamon. Tail is 50 - 70 % of head-body length. Kilonzo’s Brush-furred Rat is larger than Verhagen’s Brush-furred Rat (L. verhageni) from Mount Meru and has longer ears and shorter hindfeet than the Dark-colored Brush-furred Rat (L. aquilus) from Mount Kilimandjaro. Kilonzo’s Brush-furred Rat has same speckled pelage and other characteristics as species in the L. flavopunctatus species group but has a diploid number of 2 n = 68. Molecular and craniometric characteristics also distinguish it from similar species.

Muridae

discussion

Lophuromys kilonzoi was recently named as a new species and belongs to the L. flavopunctatus “ clade. ” Some molecular analyses placed it in an Ethiopian-Tanzanian subclade including L. brunneus, L. aquilus, and L. verhageni. Monotypic. Distribution. Usambara and Uluguru Mts, E Tanzania.

Muridae