441.

Grayish-brown Shaggy Rat

Dasymys griseifrons

French: Dasymys d’'Ethiopie / German: Graubraune Wollhaarratte / Spanish: Rata peluda gris parda

Other common names: Ethiopian Shaggy Rat, Grayish-brown Dasymys

Taxonomy. Dasymys griseifrons Osgood, 1936,

south-west side of Lake Tana, near Dungulbar, Gojjam, Ethiopia.

Formerly included in D. incomtus, D. griseifrons was elevated to full species by S. K. Mullin and colleagues in 2004. One of the largest members of the genus, it has widest interorbital constriction of the skull. Monotypic.

Distribution. Restricted to lakes Tana and Jigga, in Ethiopia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 166 mm, tail 135 mm, hindfoot 34 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Like all Dasymys, it has soft, shaggy, long-haired fur that is mostly reddish-brown in color. Tail is shorter (88%) than head-body length.

Habitat. Swampy areas in wetlands.

Food and Feeding. Predominantly herbivorous, the Grayish-brown Shaggy Rat has a diet presumably similar to that described for African Shaggy Rat ( D. incomtus), including aquatic and semi-aquatic plants and insects.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Grayish-brown Shaggy Rats are presumably crepuscular and diurnal, like other members of genus.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

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

Bibliography. Carleton & Martinez (1991), Monadjem et al. (2015), Mullin, Pillay & Taylor (2004), Mullin, Taylor & Pillay (2004).