Deomys ferrugineus

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Classis: Mammalia
Subclassis: Theria
Infraclassis: Placentalia
Ordo: Rodentia
Subordo: Myomorpha
Superfamilia: Muroidea
Familia: Muridae
Subfamilia: Deomyinae
Genus: Deomys
Species: Deomys ferrugineus

Name

Deomys ferrugineus Thomas, 1888

Vernacular names

References

* Deomys ferrugineus on Mammal Species of the World.
Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, 2 Volume Set edited by Don E. Wilson, DeeAnn M. Reeder

The Link Rat (Deomys ferrugineus) is 12-14.5 cm long with a 15-21 cm long tail. It weighs 40-70 g. It has long legs and a pointed, narrow head, surmounted by enormous ears. It was a very long, bicoloured tail. The back and forehead are rich orange and brown and the underside is white. The rump hairs are stiff. The link rat is nocturnal and crepuscular. It prefers seasonally flooded forest floors between Cameroon and the Victoria Nile. This equatorial species ranges north of the Zaire River. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, and Uganda. It has a widespread but scattered distribution and is seldom common. It feeds mainly on insects, crustaceans, slugs and some fallen fruits, notably palm-nut husks.

The Link Rat has traditionally been placed as a member of the subfamily Dendromurinae along with the African climbing mice, but has been demonstrated to be more closely related to the spiny mice on the basis of molecular data. A new subfamily (Deomyinae) has now been created, which contains Acomys, Deomys, Lophuromys and Uranomys. This group is supported by several recent phylogenetic studies.[1]

References

* Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. Pp. 894-1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
* Nowak, Ronald M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World, 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1936 pp. ISBN 0-8018-5789-9
* Schlitter, D. & Kerbis Peterhans, J. 2004. Deomys ferrugineus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 19 July 2007.

1. ^ Lecompte et al., 2008, Phylogeny and biogeography of African Murinae based on mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences, with a new tribal classification of the subfamily