Dasymys robertsii, Mullin, P. J. Taylor & Pillay, 2004

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Muridae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 536-884 : 763

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6887260

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6868693

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/1E30E275-3486-FF37-E16B-240C76998FC3

treatment provided by

Carolina

scientific name

Dasymys robertsii
status

 

452. View Plate 47: Muridae

Roberts’s Shaggy Rat

Dasymys robertsii

French: Dasymys de Roberts / German: Robert-\ Wollhaarratte / Spanish: Rata peluda de Robert

Other common names: Roberts's Dasymys

Taxonomy. Dasymys robertsii Mullin, P. J. Taylor & Pillay, 2004 ,

Klipfontein, Wa-terberg Mts, 1091 m, Limpopo Province, South Africa .

Dasymys robertsii is distinguished from D. incomtus (sensu stricto) by allozyme, chromosomal and craniometric characters. Monotypic.

Distribution. NE Zimbabwe, extreme E Botswana, and NE South Africa. View Figure

Descriptive notes. Head-body 149 mm,

tail 128 mm, ear 20 mm, hindfoot 32 mm; weight 90 g. Like all Dasymys , Roberts’s Shaggy Rat has soft, shaggy, long-haired fur that is reddish brown in color dorsally and dull gray ventrally. Head is broad, with short muzzle, vibrissae long, and ears rounded and well furred on inside. Tail is of medium length (86% of head-body length), heavily scaled, sparsely haired, and darker above than below.

Habitat. Swampy areas in wetlands.

Food and Feeding. Roberts’s Shaggy Rat is primarily herbivorous, feeding mostly on aquatic and terrestrial plants, but to a lesser extent also on insects.

Breeding. Breeding season ofRoberts’s Shaggy Rat in Zimbabwe is in warm wet months of August—-March.

Activity patterns. Roberts’s Shaggy Rats are predominantly crepuscular and diurnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List. Classified as vulnerable regionally (South Africa).

Bibliography. Child et al. (2016), Monadjem et al. (2015), Mullin, Pillay & Taylor (2005), Mullin, Pillay, Taylor & Campbell (2002), Smithers (1975).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Rodentia

Family

Muridae

Genus

Dasymys

Loc

Dasymys robertsii

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr 2017
2017
Loc

Dasymys robertsii

Mullin, P. J. Taylor & Pillay 2004
2004
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