Otomys F. Cuvier, 1824 . Dents des Mammifères, p. 255.

TYPE SPECIES: Euryotis irrorata Brants, 1827 .

SYNONYMS: Anchotomys, Euryotis, Lamotomys, Metotomys, Myotomys, Oreinomys, Oreomys, Palaeotomys .

COMMENTS: Bohmann (1952) included all otomyine species in Otomys, but most classifications have accorded the large-bullar forms seperate generic status as Parotomys (see below). Other synonyms have been infrequently treated as genera, namely Myotomys, including unisulcatus and sloggetti (see Thomas, 1918b; Pocock, 1976), and Lamotomys, including laminatus (see Roberts, 1951). Oldest known fossil Otomys species date from late Pliocene (2-3 mya) in South Africa and from early Pleistocene (1-2 mya) in East Africa (see Denys, 1989).