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: Rodentiaa
Subordo: Myomorpha
Superfamilia: Muroidea
Familia: Muridae
Subfamilia: Murinae
Tribus: Otomyini
Genus: Otomys
Species (31 + †3): O. anchietae – O. angoniensis – O. auratus – O. barbouri – O. burtoni – †O. campbelli – O. cuanzensis – O. cheesmani – O. dartmouthi – O. dollmani – O. denti – O. fortior – O. helleri – †O. gracilis – O. irroratus – O. jacksoni – O. karoensis – O. lacustris – O. laminatus – O. maximus – O. occidentalis – O. orestes – †O. petteri – O. saundersiae – O. simiensis – O. sloggetti – O. thomasi – O. tropicalis – O. typus – O. unisulcatus – O. uzungwensis – O. yaldeni – O. willani – O. zinki
Name
Otomys F. Cuvier, 1824: 255
Type species: Euryotis irrorata Brants, 1827, by subsequent designation by Sclater (1899: 195).
Synonyms
Euryotis Brants, 1827: 93
Type species: Euryotis irrorata Brants, 1827, by monotypy.
Oreomys Heuglin, 1877: 76
Type species: Oreomys typus Heuglin, 1877, by monotypy.
Oreinomys Trouessart, 1880: 111 [unnecessary replacement name for Oreomys Heuglin, 1877, thought to be preoccupied by Orenomys Aymard, 1855]
Myotomys Thomas, 1918: 204, 206
Type species: Otomys unisulcatus Brants, 1827 [=F. Cuvier, 1824], by original designation.
Anchotomys Thomas, 1918: 204, 208 [as subgenus]
Type species: Euryotis anchietae Bocage, 1882, by original designation and monotypy.
Lamotomys Thomas, 1918: 204, 208 [as subgenus]
Type species: Otomys laminatus Thomas & Schwann, 1905, by original designation and monotypy.
†Palaeotomys Broom, 1937: 761 [as subgenus]
Type species: †Palaeotomys gracilis Broom, 1937, by monotypy.
Metotomys Broom, 1937: 765 [as subgenus]
Type species: Otomys turneri Wroughton, 1907, by original designation.
†Prototomys Broom, 1948: 35
Type species: †Otomys campbelli Broom & Schepers, 1946, by monotypy.
References
Primary references
Cuvier, F. 1824. Des dents des mammifères considérées comme caractères zoologiques. F.G. Levrault: Paris. 259 pp.
Broom, R. 1937. On some new Pleistocene mammals from limestone caves of the Transvaal. South African Journal of Science 33(3): 750–768. hdl: 10520/AJA00382353_8174 Open access Reference page.
Broom, R. 1948. Some South African Pliocene and Pleistocene mammals. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 21(1): 1–38. hdl: 10520/AJA00411752_457 Reference page.
Additional references
Dieterlen, F. & Van der Straeten, E. 1992. Species of the genus Otomys from Cameroon and Nigeria and their relationship to East African forms. Bonner zoologische Beiträge 43(3): 383–392. PDF
Taylor, P.J. et al. 2011. Specific limits and emerging diversity patterns in East African populations of laminate-toothed rats, genus Otomys (Muridae: Murinae: Otomyini): revision of the Otomys typus complex. Zootaxa 3024: 1–66. Preview
Links
Otomys in Mammal Species of the World.
Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn M. (Editors) 2005. Mammal Species of the World – A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Third edition. ISBN 0-8018-8221-4.
Otomys – Taxon details on Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
African vlei rats (Otomys), also known as groove-toothed rats, live in many areas of sub-Saharan Africa. Most species live in marshlands, grasslands, and similar habitats[2] and feed on the vegetation of such areas, occasionally supplementing it with roots and seeds. The name "vlei" refers to the South African term for intermittent, seasonal, or perennial bodies of standing water.
Otomys are compact rodents with a tendency to shorter faces and legs than other types of rats. The tails also are shorter than most Muridae, typically between one third and two thirds of the body length.[3] The coat colour varies according to species,[2] but generally they have the brown-to-grey agouti coats typical of mice and other small wild rodents. Species living in warm or temperate regions tend to have unusually large ears for murids (e.g. Otomys irroratus), whereas some of the alpine species, such as Otomys sloggetti have markedly smaller ears. (However, the latter species may no longer belong in the genus Otomys.)
Depending on the species adult Otomys have a body length between 12 and 22 cm (5–9 inches) and weigh 90 to 260 grams (3–9 oz).
Species
Genus Otomys[1] - groove-toothed or vlei rats
Angolan vlei rat, Otomys anchietae
Angoni vlei rat, Otomys angoniensis
Barbour's vlei rat, Otomys barbouri
Burton's vlei rat, Otomys burtoni
Cheesman's vlei rat, Otomys cheesmani[4]
Cuanza vlei rat, Otomys cuanzensis
Ruwenzori vlei rat, Otomys dartmouthi
Dent's vlei rat, Otomys denti
Dollman's vlei rat, Otomys dollmani
Charada vlei rat, Otomys fortior[4]
Heller's vlei rat, Otomys helleri[4]
Southern African vlei rat, Otomys irroratus
Mount Elgon vlei rat, Otomys jacksoni
Tanzanian vlei rat, Otomys lacustris
Laminate vlei rat, Otomys laminatus
Large vlei rat, Otomys maximus
Western vlei rat, Otomys occidentalis
Afroalpine vlei rat, Otomys orestes
Saunder's vlei rat, Otomys saundersiae
Simien vlei rat, Otomys simiensis[4]
Thomas's vlei rat, Otomys thomasi[4]
Tropical vlei rat, Otomys tropicalis
Ethiopian vlei rat, Otomys typus
Uzungwe vlei rat, Otomys uzungwensis
Yalden's vlei rat, Otomys yaldeni[4]
Mount Kilimanjaro vlei rat, Otomys zinki[4]
References
Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M., eds. (2005). "Genus Otomys". Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
The Kingdon Pocket Guide to African Mammals, Jonathan Kingdon (2004) Russel Friedman Books ISBN 1-875091-14-9
Mills, Gus & Hes, Lex (1997). The Complete Book of Southern African Mammals. Cape Town: Struik Publishers. ISBN 0947430555.
Taylor, Peter J.; Lavrenchenko, Leonid A.; Carleton, Michael D.; Verheyen, Erik; Bennett, Nigel C.; Oosthuizen, Carel J.; Maree, Sarita (2011). "Specific limits and emerging diversity patterns in East African populations of laminate-toothed rats, genus Otomys (Muridae: Murinae: Otomyini): Revision of the Otomys typus complex" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3024 (1): 1–66. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3024.1.1. hdl:2263/18125.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/"
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
