Paraphiomys renelavocati, Antoñanzas & Sen & Mein, 2004

Antoñanzas, Raquel López, Sen, Sevket & Mein, Pierre, 2004, Systematics and phylogeny of the cane rats (Rodentia: Thryonomyidae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 142, pp. 423-444 : 431

PARAPHIOMYS RENELAVOCATI SP. NOV.

As explained below, the material from Rusinga ( Kenya) designated as P. stromeri stromeri by Lavocat (1973) represents a species distinct from both Apodecter stromeri and P. hopwoodi . This species differs from Apodecter stromeri in being bigger and less hypsodont, and from P. hopwoodi in lacking the metalophulid II on the lower molars.

We name this species P. renelavocati sp. nov. to honour the extensive work of René Lavocat on rodent systematics. The mandible with d4-m3 from the Lower Miocene deposits of Rusinga depicted by Lavocat (1973: pl. 26, fig. 9) is chosen as holotype ( Fig. 3H). It is housed in the National Museums of Kenya (Nairobi), where it is available for study under the reference number KNM RU 2208 .

Paraphiomys renelavocati is diagnosed as a Paraphiomys species of middle size with upper molars with mesoloph and lower molars lacking the metalophulid II. Paraphiomys renelavocati is bigger and less high crowned than Apodecter stromeri . It is distinct from P. pigotti , P. hopwoodi , Paraphiomys sp. nov. from Saudi Arabia, P. occidentalis , Epiphiomys coryndoni and Sacaresia moyaeponsi in the absence of metalophulid II on the lower molars. Paraphiomys renelavocati is much smaller and less hypsodont than Neosciuromys africanus and P. simonsi . It differs from Gaudeamus aegyptius , among many characters, in having an anterolabial cuspid on the lower molars and in having the hypolophid much less obliquely directed. Paraphiomys renelavocati shows the hypolophid on the d4 anteriorly directed whereas in P. orangeus it is transverse. Paraphiomys renelavocati is distinct from P. roessneri in having a mesoloph on the P4 and M1 ( Mein et al., 2000: 378) and from P. australis and both species of Paraulacodus in being much smaller. Paraphiomys renelavocati differs from P. afarensis mostly in having the m1 and the m2 nearly equal in length and an anterolabial cuspid on the lower molars, and the hypolophid nearly transverse.