497.

Karoo Foursstriped Grass Rat

Rhabdomys intermedius

French: Rhabdomys du Karoo / German: Karoo-Vierstreifengrasmaus / Spanish: Rata de hierba de cuatro listas de Karoo

Other common names: Karoo Rhabdomys

Taxonomy. Arvicanthis pumilio interme-dius Wroughton, 1905,

Deelfontein, N of Richmond, central Karoo, Northern Cape Province, South Africa.

Rhabdomys intermedius was recently split from R. pumilio on molecular grounds;it is parapatric with latter species and with R. bechuanae, R. chakae, and R. dilectus . Monotypic.

Distribution. A narrow band through the semiarid Nama Karoo of South Africa.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 96-135 mm, tail 90-121 mm, ear 12-15 mm, hindfoot 22-27 mm; weight 28-64 g. A small rodent with longitudinal black and cream stripes, the Karoo Four-striped Grass Rat is similar morphologically to other Rhabdomys species but with background color paler than that of mesic species. Fur is coarse, yellowish brown to speckled buff above, paler below. It has no mid-dorsal stripe, but instead two lateral cream-colored broad stripes, each bordered by two black stripes, extend from between ears to base of tail. Head is of same color as back, with black median stripe from between ears to between eyes. Nose, chin, throat, and abdomen are paler than above. Ears are densely covered with short reddish-brown hairs. Forefeet are paler than dorsal fur, soles darkly pigmented. Tail is comparatively long (c.96% of headbody length), sparsely haired, bicolored, black above and yellowish brown or gray below. Females have 2+2 = 4 pairs of nipples.

Habitat. Karoo shrubs and bushes.

Food and Feeding. In the Nama Karoo Desert, the diet varies temporally and spatially, comprising mostly foliage but also seeds and insects. This contrasts with diet of desert rodents in North America and Israel, where seeds are very important.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Du Toit et al. (2012), Happold (2013a), Kerley (1989, 1992a, 1992b), Monadjem et al. (2015).