Canariomys

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Cladus: Synapsida
Cladus: Eupelycosauria
Cladus: Sphenacodontia
Cladus: Sphenacodontoidea
Cladus: Therapsida
Cladus: Theriodontia
Cladus: Cynodontia
Cladus: Eucynodontia
Cladus: Probainognathia
Cladus: Prozostrodontia
Cladus: Mammaliaformes
Classis: Mammalia
Subclassis: Trechnotheria
Infraclassis: Zatheria
Supercohors: Theria
Cohors: Eutheria
Infraclassis: Placentalia
Cladus: Boreoeutheria
Superordo: Euarchontoglires
Ordo: Rodentia
Subordo: Myomorpha
Superfamilia: Muroidea

Familia: Muridae
Subfamilia: Murinae
Genus: †Canariomys
Species (2): †C. bravoi – †C. tamarani

Name

Canariomys Crusafont-Pairó & Petter, 1964: 607

Type species: Canariomys bravoi Crusafont-Pairó & Petter, 1964, by monotypy.

References
Primary references

Crusafont-Pairó, M. & Petter, F. 1964. Un Muriné géant fossile des iles Canaries Canariomys bravoi gen. nov., sp. nov. (Rongeurs, Muridés). Mammalia 28: 607–612. DOI: 10.1515/mamm.1964.28.4.607

Additional references

López-Martínez, N. & López-Jurado, L.F. 1987. Un nuevo múrido gigante del cuaternario de Gran Canaria : Canariomys tamarani nov. sp. (Rodentia, Mammalia) : interpretación filogenética y biogeográfica. Doñana. Acta vertebrata 2: 1–60. hdl: 10553/692 Open access Reference page.

Canariomys is an extinct genus of rodents (Old World rats and mice) that once existed on the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria, part of the Canary Islands, Spain. These giant rats could reach a weight of about 1 kg (2.2 lb). They were herbivores; their diet was based on plant materials, probably soft vegetables such as roots, ferns, and berries, but not grass. C. tamarani were considered herbivores, eating everything plant-like except grass with good digging skills. While C. bravoi were considered as a rat character, because of its large size, with an omnivorous diet with good climbing skills. They were one of two groups of rodents native to the archipelago, alongside the lava mouse (Malpaisomys insularis), which was native to Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.

It is generally believed that the species of Tenerife lived in a wooded area linked to the laurisilva and that it had climbing abilities, whereas the species of Gran Canaria lived in more open environments and was more linked to the excavation of burrows.

Two species are currently recognized:

Tenerife giant rat, Canariomys bravoi (Tenerife, Pleistocene-Holocene)
Gran Canaria giant rat, Canariomys tamarani (Gran Canaria, Pleistocene-Holocene)

Both species became extinct around the beginning of the 1st Millennium, shortly after the first human settlement of the islands by the Guanches.[1]

Genetic evidence indicates that the genus is nested within Arvicanthis, specifically within the African grass rat (A. niloticus) species complex, with an estimated divergence from its mainland relatives around 650,000 years ago.[1]
References

Renom, Pere; de-Dios, Toni; Civit, Sergi; Llovera, Laia; Sánchez-Gracia, Alejandro; Lizano, Esther; Rando, Juan Carlos; Marquès-Bonet, Tomàs; Kergoat, Gael J.; Casanovas-Vilar, Isaac; Lalueza-Fox, Carles (2021). "Genetic data from the extinct giant rat from Tenerife (Canary Islands) points to a recent divergence from mainland relatives". Biology Letters. 17 (12): 20210533. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2021.0533. PMC 8692034. PMID 34932923.

Crusafont-Pairo, M.; Petter, F. (1964). "Un muriné géant fossile des îles Canaries: Canariomys bravoi gen. nov., sp. nov. (Rongeurs, Muridés)". Mammalia. 28 (4). doi:10.1515/mamm.1964.28.4.607. S2CID 84500531.
Michaux, Jacques; Hautier, Lionel; Hutterer, Rainer; Lebrun, Renaud; Guy, Franck; García-Talavera, Francisco (October 2012). "Body shape and life style of the extinct rodent Canariomys bravoi (Mammalia, Murinae) from Tenerife, Canary Islands (Spain)". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 11 (7): 485–494. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2012.06.004.