469.

Barbary Striped Grass Mouse

Lemniscomys barbarus

French:

Rat-rayé

de Barbarie / German: BerberStreifengrasmaus

/ Spanish: Raton de hierba listado de Berberia

Other common names: Barbary

Lemniscomys

Taxonomy. Mus barbarus Linnaeus, 1766,

“Barbaria [= Morocco].”

Lemmniscomys barbarus previously included L. hoogstraali and L. zebra as synonyms, until M. D. Carleton and E. Van der Straeten in 1997 provided morphometric data for separation of L. zebra . L. hoogstraali, known only from holotype, may not be a valid species. Monotypic.

Distribution. A narrow coastalstrip in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, mostly N of Atlas Mts.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 101-121 mm, tail 110-145 mm, ear 14-16 mm, hindfoot 24-29 mm; weight 28-56 g. The Barbary Striped Grass Mouse has fur buffy brown above, contrasting with pure white below, with narrow dark mid-dorsal strip and six or seven yellowish stripes on each flank. Tail is long (115% of head-body length), dark above and whitish below, sparsely haired, with concentric rings ofscales. Forefeet have three functional digits, first digit vestigial, and fifth digit highly reduced (with nail instead of claw). Females have 2+2 = 4 pairs of nipples.

Habitat. Bushes, grassy habitats, and agriculturalfields along coastal plain.

Food and Feeding. The Barbary Striped Grass Mouse is mostly or exclusively herbivorous, feeding close to burrows.

Breeding. In Tunisia, males are reproductively active throughout the year. Females have 3-11 embryos.

Activity patterns. Barbary Striped Grass Mice are terrestrial, and nocturnal and crepuscular, with activity peaks before sunrise, after sunset, and in the middle of the night.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Barbary Striped Grass Mice excavate complex burrows (having 2-3 chambers) under bushes and in agricultural fields.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red Last.

Bibliography. Bernard (1969), Carleton & Van der Straeten (1997), Chéneti & Sani (1989), Happold (2013a), Monadjem et al. (2015).