Lemniscomys mittendorfi, 1968

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Muridae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 536-884 : 770

474.

Mittendorf’s Striped

Grass Mouse

Lemniscomys mittendorfi

French: Rat-rayé de Mittendorf / German: Mittendorf-Streifengrasmaus / Spanish: Ratén de hierba listado de Mittendorf

Other common names: Mittendorf's Lemniscomys

Taxonomy. Lemmniscomys mittendorfi Eisen- traut, 1968 ,

Lake Oku on Mt Oku, Banso Highlands, West Cameroon.

Lemniscomys mittendorfi exhibits similarities to L. macculus and L. bellieri . Monotypic.

Distribution. Restricted to Mt Oku, Cam- eroon.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 85-98 mm, tail 75-84 mm, ear 13-15 mm, hindfoot 19-22 mm; weight 22-34 g. Mittendorf’s Striped Grass Mouse is, along with Hoog-

straal’s Striped Grass Mouse ( L. hoogstraali ), the darkest member of the genus. Furis very dark brown above and contrastingly gray below, with inconspicuous black mid-dorsalstripe and eightlateral stripes, upper three oflatter broken into pale buffy spots. Eye-ring and nasal region are buff. Tailis relatively short (c.86% of head-body length), black above, whitish buff below, thickly covered with hairs in middle section. Forefeet and hindfeet are buff and sparsely haired. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 56, FN = 66-72.

Habitat. Afro-alpine grass savanna above the forest line, at ¢.2300 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Denys et al. (2014), Filling (1992), Happold (2013a), Monadjem et al. (2015), Van der Straeten (1980b).

Figures

469. Barbary Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys barbarus), 470. Typical Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys striatus), 471. [MISSING], 473. Senegal Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys linulus), 474. Mittendorf’s Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys Ts), 475. Hoogstraal’s Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys hoogstraali), 476. Buffoon Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys macculus), 477. Griselda Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys griselda), 478. Single-striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys rosalia), 479. Rosevear’s Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys roseveart), 480. West African Rufous-nosed Rat (Oenomys ornatus), 481. Common Rufous-nosed Rat (Oenomys hypoxanthus), 482. East African Groove-toothed Swamp Rat (Pelomys fallax), 483. Hopkins’s Groove-toothed Swamp Rat (Pelomys hopkinst), 484. Lake Victoria Groove-toothed Swamp Rat (Pelomys isseli), 485. Angolan Groove-toothed Swamp Rat (Pelomys campanae), 486. Least Groove-toothed Swamp Rat (Pelomys minor), 487. Target Rat (Stochomys longicaudatus), 488. Kemp's Thicket Rat (Thamnomys kempr), 489. Hatt’s Thicket Rat (Thamnomys major), 490. Schouteden’s Thicket Rat (Thamnomys schoutedeni), 491. Thomas's Thicket Rat (Thamnomys venustus), 492. Namaqua Rock Rat (Micaelamys namaquensis), 493. Grant's Rock Rat (Micaelamys granti), 494. Mesic Four-striped Grass Rat (Rhabdomys dilectus), 495. West-Central South African Four-striped Grass Rat (Rhabdomys bechuanae), 496. KwaZulu Natal Four-striped Grass Rat (Rhabdomys chakae), 497. [MISSING], 499. Loring’s Thallomys (Thallomys loringi), 500. Black-tailed Thallomys (Thallomys nigricauda), 501. Sundevall’s Thallomys (Thallomys paedulcus), 502. Shortridge’s Thallomys (Thallomys shortridgei)

Distribution. Restricted to Mt Oku, Cam- eroon.