Notocitellus annulatus (Audubon & Bachman, 1842)
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6840226 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6818998 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/064D0660-FFAB-ED56-FA1D-FA74F8CCFCE3 |
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treatment provided by |
Diego |
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scientific name |
Notocitellus annulatus |
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Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel
Notocitellus annulatus View in CoL
French: Spermophile a queue annelée / German: Ringelschwanzziesel / Spanish: Ardilla terrestre de cola anillada
Taxonomy. Spermophilus annulatus Audubon & Bachman, 1842 View in CoL ,
“Western prairies.”
Restricted by A. H. Howell in 1938 to Manzanillo, Colima, Mexico.
Two subspecies are recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
N.a.annulatusAudubon&Bachman,1842—SWN.a.toJalisco(Mexico).
N. a. goldmani Merriam, 1902 — Jalisco to W Guerrero (Mexico).
Descriptive notes. Head-body mean 221-2 mm (males) and 219-3 mm (females), tail mean 215-2 mm (males) and 207-6 mm (females); weight mean 360-8 g (males) and 386-3 g (females). The Ringtailed Ground Squirrel is medium-sized and has strikingly dark brown cinnamon-agouti dorsal pelage, with suffusion of orange to red on limbs. Eyes rings are buff to light orange. Venter is light rust to orange. Tail is grizzled slate-gray and frosted with light color ofventer. Subspecies goldmani has less rust color than annulatus.
Habitat. Dry tropical deciduous forests, associated with figs (Ficus, Moraceae) and oil palm (Elaeis, Arecaceae), and thornscrub with mesquite (Prosopis) and Acacia (both Fabaceae) trees and shrubs. The Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel appears capable of persisting in croplands of agave, lemon, mango, guava, and corn.
Food and Feeding. The Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel is an herbivore, feeding on grass and forb leaves, stems, shoots; however, fruits and seeds of palms and mesquite are preferred. Cacti flesh and fruits are also eaten. It eats significant numbers of insects and spends considerable time foraging in forest canopy.
Breeding. The Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel reproduces in the dry season (December— June).
Activity patterns. Ring-tailed Ground Squirrels are diurnal and active year-round.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel can live in low densities and appears to be solitary. Nesting can occur in burrows, crevices, or tree cavities. It vocalizes and quickly seeks shelter when alarmed.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Population trend of the Ring-tailed Ground Squirrel is unknown. Major conservation challenges might be degradation and fragmentation offorests and scrublands. It is locally common and can be viewed as a pest, resulting in it being hunted, trapped, or poisoned. Lack of data on natural history and ecology creates difficulty in effective management and conservation.
Bibliography. Alvarez-Castafieda, Castro-Arellano, Lacher & Vazquez (2008i), Best (1995h), Ceballos (2014), Howell (1938), Thorington et al. (2012).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
