Black pika

The black pika or silver pika (Ochotona nigritia) is a species of mammal in the family Ochotonidae. It was thought to be common to the Yunnan Province of China [2] where it was first discovered in 2000, it is only known from four specimens. The validity of the species has been questioned,[3] with some studies suggesting that the known specimens represent melanistic individuals of Forrest's pika (Ochotona forresti).[4]

Black pika
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Lagomorpha
Family: Ochotonidae
Genus: Ochotona
Species:
O. nigritia
Binomial name
Ochotona nigritia
Gong, Wang, Li & Li, 2000
Black pika range

Subsequently, in 2011, a WWF-India team on an expedition to West Kameng, India reported sighting two black pikas at an altitude of 13,000 ft in the Thembang Bapu community-conserved forest area.[5]

It is rarely found, one of the six pika species endemic to central China, with no true population studies.[6][lower-alpha 1]

References

Notes
  1. The other five species are Thomas's pika (Ochotona thomasi),Forrest's pika (Ochotona forresti), the Gaoligong pika (Ochotona gaoligongensis), the Tsing-ling pika (Ochotona huangensis), and the Muli pika (Ochotona muliensis).[6]
  1. Smith, A.T. & Johnston, C.H. (2008). "Ochotona nigrita". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2008. Retrieved 10 April 2009.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link) Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of data deficient.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-09-28. Retrieved 2011-11-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M., eds. (2005). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  4. Ge, D.; et al. (2012). "Reevaluation of several taxa of Chinese lagomorphs (Mammalia: Lagomorpha) described on the basis of pelage phenotype variation". Mammalian Biology. 77 (2): 113–123. doi:10.1016/j.mambio.2011.09.009.
  5. Goswami, Roopak (July 15, 2011). "Black pika sighted in Arunachal - WWF-India research team stumbles upon rare mammal at 13000ft". The Telegraph. Calcutta: Ananda Bazaar Patrika. Retrieved July 15, 2011. The WWF members sighted two black pikas in Pangila and Potok areas at an altitude of 13,000 feet on June 22 and 23 while they, along with villagers of Thembang, were conducting surveys in the Thembang Bapu community-conserved forest area in West Kameng district. The survey was part of a project for development of a management plan of the area.
  6. Alves, Ferrand & Hacklände 2008, p. 308.

Bibliography


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