Mus (Nannomys) cf. musculoides-minutoides Temminck, 1853

Decher, Jan, Norris, Ryan W., Abedi-Lartey, Michael, Oppong, James, Hutterer, Rainer, Weinbrenner, Martin, Koch, Martin, Podsiadlowski, Lars & Kilpatrick, C. William, 2021, A survey of small mammals in the Volta Region of Ghana with comments on zoogeography and conservation, Zoosystema 43 (14), pp. 253-281 : 264

Mus (Nannomys) cf. musculoides-minutoides Temminck, 1853

( Fig. 7 )

Mus musculoides Temminck, 1853: 161 .

COMMON NAME. — Pygmy Mouse.

MATERIAL EXAMINED. — Kalakpa Resource Reserve • 1 ♂; USNM 590107. Agumatsa Wildlife Sanctuary • 1 ♂; ZTNHC 956 • 1♀; UVM VR96. Apesokubi • 1 ♂; UVM VR143 . Kyabobo National Park ( Fig. 7 ) • 1 ♂; UVM VR108 • 5 ♀; USNM 590108-590110, UVM VR 112+VR114. Shiare • 3 ♂; USNM 590111, UVM VR 125, 128 • 3 ♀; USNM 590106, 590112, UVM VR130 .

REMARK

Curators of collaborating collections (USNM & SMF) independently identified our Pygmy mice as M. (Nannomys) musculoides following traditonal morphological approaches (M. Carleton & D. Kock in litt.). However, we acknowledge that recent molecular, cytogenetic and morphological studies have made identification of these taxa less straightforward, with both M. musculoides and M. minutoides occurring sympatrically in West Africa ( Kan Kouassi et al. 2008, Monadjem et al. 2015). For this reason we label our Pygmy Mice M. cf. musculoides-minutoides Pygmy mice were caught at all sites except Liati Wote. They replaced Praomys Thomas, 1915 as the most common species in the forest-savanna mosaic and the rough hilly terrain of KRNP and Shiare, making up 62.5 and 56.25% of the total catch, respectively. This is consistent with the findings of Hurst et al. (1995) in whose survey at KRNP the Pygmy Mouse (as M. minutoides ) made up 39.5% of the total catch.

CONSERVATION STATUS. — Mus musculoides and M. minutoides are both listed as “Least Concern” in the IUCN Red List.

Figures

FIG. 7. — Pygmy Mouse Mus cf musculoides-minutoides Temminck, 1853 from Kyabobo Range National Park. Photo: M. Weinbrenner 2001.