Bornean pithecheirops

The Bornean pithecheirops (Pithecheirops otion) is a species of rodent found in Borneo. It is monotypic in the genus Pithecheirops. Pithecheirops is closely related to the genus Pithecheir, and the name is derived from Pithecheir and the Greek ops, meaning "resembling".[2] The only known example of this species was caught in the Danum Valley Field Centre in Sabah, north Borneo, at approximately 150 m.[3]

Bornean pithecheirops
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Genus: Pithecheirops
Emmons, 1993
Species:
P. otion
Binomial name
Pithecheirops otion
Emmons, 1993

Description

It is similar to species in the genus Pithecheir, both having long, dense, soft fur and broad feet. The species is distinguished by the appearance of the inner ear bones and auditory bulla.[2]

Habitat

It was found in "dense viny roadside secondary brush on an abandoned logging road".[3] The dominant habitat of the area is lowland dipterocarp forest. IUCN lists the species as Data Deficient due to this being the only known example of the species. There is no information on population numbers or distribution to indicate if the species is at risk or not. However given the loss of forest and human disturbance in the area and the fact that it was found in a degraded habitat, it may be somewhat adaptable to habitat loss. [1]

References
  1. Helgen, K.; Aplin, K. & Ruedas, L. (2008). "Pithecheirops otion". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2008. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T136834A4345146.en.
  2. Emmons, Louise H. (1993). "A new genus and species of rat from Borneo (Rodentia: Muridae)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 106 (4): 752–761.
  3. Musser, G.G. & Carleton, M.D. (2005). "Superfamily Muroidea". Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore, Maryland: The Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 894–1531. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0.

Data related to Bornean pithecheirops at Wikispecies

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