Cricetomys Waterhouse, 1840

Denys, Christiane, Missoup, Alain Didier, Nicolas, Violaine, Sylla, Morlaye, Douno, Mory, Kadjo, Blaise, Lalis, Aude & Monadjem, Ara, 2025, Annotated checklist of rodents from a biodiversity hotspot, Mount Nimba (West Africa), Zoosystema 47 (27), pp. 617-689 : 650

Genus Cricetomys Waterhouse, 1840 ( Table 9 )

REMARKS

The giant pouched rats are relatively abundant in West Africa where they are often associated with anthropogenic habitats. Their taxonomy has been debated for long and a molecular analysis showed that the C. emini ( Wroughton, 1910) complex is composed of at least four allopatric clades that should be elevated to species rank ( Olayemi et al. 2012). According to these authors C. gambianus Waterhouse, 1840 would be restricted to West African savannas and is also present in Guinea. On Mount Nimba, Lamotte & Heim de Balsac (1958) initially signalized the existence of C. gambianus liberiae Osgood, 1910 . Coe (1975) also signalized the presence of C. gambianus as well as Misonne & Verschuren (1976). Gautun et al. (1986) found C. emini in forest of the Zouguepo plateau and Roche (1971) reported C. emini from Seredou (forested Guinea). Mamba et al. (2021) found both species in the same locality of Mount Ziama ( Guinea). Bene et al. (2013) listed both species as being sold as bushmeat on the Nimba town markets. In the Guinean side of the mount, 111 specimens belonging to Cricetomys spp. were captured by hunters in 2004-2005 ( Dufour 2006).