556.

Phillips's Mouse

Mus phillipsi

French: Souris de Phillips / German: Phillips-Stachelzwergmaus / Spanish: Raton de Phillips Other common names: \ Wroughton's Small Spiny Mouse

Taxonomy. Mus phillipsi Wroughton, 1912,

“Asirgarh, [Nimar District, India]. Alititude 1,500 [feet (= 457 m)].” Included in subgenus Pyromys, although there are currently no genetic data available to determine its true phylogenetic position. Previously considered a synonym of M. cervicolor . Monotypic.

Distribution. Endemic to India (Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu states), at elevations of 500-1500 m.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 62-80 mm, tail 50-62 mm, ear 11-14 mm, hindfoot 14-18 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Small size, tail shorter (c.80%) than head-body length. Fur spiny and pelage brown to buff dorsally, with white belly. Tail is bicolored. On the skull there are very developed supraorbital ridges. Females bear five pairs of mammae.

Habitat. Tropical and subtropical thornscrub forest, plain grassland with sparse vegetation, rocky, semiarid scrub, bush country, and dry forest patches.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. In Rajasthan, females were pregnant in December, and litter size was 2-6 (average 4-4).

Activity patterns. Phillips’s Mice are nocturnal, and terrestrial and fossorial.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Phillips’s Mouse is locally considered a pest.

Bibliography. Agrawal (2000), Marshall (1977a), Molur et al. (2005).