560.

Servant Mouse

Mus famulus

French: Souris des Nilgiri / German: Stdindische Maus / Spanish: Raton servil

Other common names: Bonhote's Mouse

Taxonomy. Mus famulus Bonhote, 1898,

Coonoor, Nilgiri Hills, Tamil Nadu, south-ern India .

Previously placed in subgenus Coelomys, but a phylogenetic study (including molecular and morphological characters) published by P. Chevret and colleagues in 2003 led to its being transferred to subgenus Mus, within which it isapparently close to M. fragilicauda and the European mice clade, and also M. cervicolor . Monotypic.

Distribution. Restricted to four fragmented locations in the Western Ghats of Kerala and Tamil Nadu states, SW India.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 90-100 mm, tail 71-94 mm, ear 12-17 mm, hindfoot 18-5-21 mm; weight 23-30-4g. Soft dorsal pelage of the Servant Mouse is dark brown while ventral pelage is medium brown. Tail is shorter (c.90%) than head-body length. Females bear three pairs of mammae.

Habitat. Tropical and subtropical montane evergreen forest and shola grassland, at elevations of 1540-2400 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Servant Mice are nocturnal and terrestrial.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List due to its very fragmented populations and its rarity.

Bibliography. Auffray et al. (2003), Chevret et al. (2003), Corbet & Hill (1992), Marshall (1977a).