Cyclopes rufus, Miranda & Casali & Perini & Machado & Santos, 2018

Miranda, Flávia R., Casali, Daniel M., Perini, Fernando A., Machado, Fabio A. & Santos, Fabrício R., 2018, Taxonomic review of the genus Cyclopes Gray, 1821 (Xenarthra: Pilosa), with the revalidation and description of new species, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 183, pp. 687-721 : 709-711

CYCLOPES RUFUS SP. NOV.

( FIG. 22)

Holotype: Female, UFMG (6015). Collected by Eduardo Sábato ( Figs 23, 26).

Type locality: PortoVelho , Rondônia, Brazil (08°51′16″S; 064°00′53″W) .

Referred specimens: Holotype: UFMG (6015), Porto Velho , Rondônia, Brazil ; Brazil: UFRO (518), Espigão do Oeste, Rondônia; UFRO (17, 184, 326), Porto Velho, Rondônia.

Etymology: The specific name rufus (meaning ‘red’ in Latin) refers to the reddish tone of the dorsal coloration of this species.

Distribution: Occurs in the interfluve between the Madeira and Aripuanã Rivers. The northern limit is possibly the Amazon River, and the southern limit is the Guaporé River ( Fig. 27).

Diagnosis: Dorsal colour of a distinct reddish tone, tail and limbs more yellowish red. Ventral and dorsal stripes absent. Fronto-nasal region of the skull not depressed, with a straight profile. External aperture of the ear directed laterally. Naso-maxillary sutures approximately parallel, with a wide fronto-maxillary suture. Fronto-parietal suture with trapezoidal shape, pterygoid bone does not overlap tympanic bulla.

Comparisons: The absence of dorsal and ventral stripes and the striking reddish coloration of Cyclopes rufus allow easy differentiation from other species of Cyclopes . Cyclopes ida also does not usually have dorsal and ventral stripes, but it has a more subdued coloration, being mainly grey with yellowish underparts. The body of C. thomasi also has a reddish-brown tone, but the limbs and tail are grey and a faint ventral stripe is present.