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IUCN Red List endangered speciesMammals described in 1834Nesomyidae

White-tailed rat

Adapted from Wikipedia · Discoverer experience

Scientific illustration of the Tenerife giant rat, an extinct rodent species from the Canary Islands.

The white-tailed rat (Mystromys albicaudatus) is also known as the white-tailed mouse, and it is the only member of the subfamily Mystromyinae in the family Nesomyidae. Because it looks similar to hamsters, some people used to think it belonged to the subfamily Cricetinae. However, careful scientific studies using molecular phylogenetic methods have shown that this is not the case, and that white-tailed rats are not closely related to hamsters. Sometimes the subfamily Mystromyinae is grouped with other subfamilies of muroids in the family Muridae.

This special rat lives only in shrubby areas and grasslands of South Africa and Lesotho. It is not a common animal, and scientists think its numbers are getting smaller because people are turning its natural scrubland homes into pastureland for animals. Because of these challenges, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has officially listed the white-tailed rat as an "endangered species".

Description

The white-tailed rat is a fairly large rodent. Males measure about 163 mm (6.4 in) from head to body, while females are slightly smaller at 144 mm (5.7 in). They have soft, dense fur that is greyish-brown on top and whitish-grey underneath. Their tails are short and covered in white fur. These rats have long whiskers, rounded dark ears, and their faces are mostly grey with some pale spots. Their fore feet have four digits, and their hind feet have five.

Taxonomy

South African fossils from the Pliocene were once thought to belong to a different species called Mystromys hausleitneri. But later studies showed that this was actually the same as the white-tailed rat, M. albicaudatus.

Distribution and habitat

The white-tailed rat is found only in South Africa and Lesotho. It lives in grasslands and areas with bushes. During the day, it stays in burrows made by meerkats or in cracks in the soil, and comes out to explore at night.

Ecology

Evidence from dental microwear of fossilised teeth from the Pliocene found in Makapansgat Limeworks suggests that the white-tailed rat’s diet was similar to what it eats today. The white-tailed rat eats vegetable matter such as seeds and sometimes takes insects. Its stomach has a ruminant-like digestive action, and there are bacteria in the hind gut that ferment the food. Unlike hamsters, white-tailed rats do not have cheek pouches.

Images

A white background illustration of a common hamster, a small furry pet often kept in homes.
Artist's reconstruction of the lava mouse, an extinct rodent from the Canary Islands.
Life restoration of the Gran Canaria giant rat, an extinct large rodent that once lived on the island of Gran Canaria.
Illustration of Apomys gracilirostris, a small mouse species, created by students from an art and design school.
An illustrated rodent from a Soviet Union stamp made in 1985.
An artist's illustration of Pemberton's deer mouse, an extinct species of rodent from history.

This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on White-tailed rat, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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