Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
The family Muridae (rats, mice and gerbils) is the largest mammalian family, comprising some 730 species in 150 genera. The family dates back to the Oligocene (26-38 million years ago) of North America. The family is thought to have undergone extensive adaptive radiation during the Miocene Epoch (26-7 million years ago). Murid rodents are a highly successful group. They tend to be adapted for early and prolific reproduction ('r-selected') rather than for long individual life spans. Members of the group are found throughout the world, in almost every terrestrial habitat. Muennink’s spiny rat belongs to the subfamily Murinae (Old World rats and mice). This group includes 561 species, and is among the most successful of all mammals in terms of ability to survive, multiply and adapt quickly. The Murinae probably originated in southeast Asia in the late Oligocne or early Eocene (25-20 million years ago). The earliest fossils are known from Spain about 6-8 million years ago. There are just two species in the genus Tokudaia: T. muenninki (Muennink’s spiny rat) and T. osimensis (Ryukyu spiny rat). T. muennicki is known from late Pleistocene or early Holocene fossils from Okinawa and nearby Le Island in the Ryukyus.
Size: Head and body length: 120-175 mm
Tail length: 100-125 mm
Tail length: 100-125 mm
Weight: Unknown
This species resembles a large vole. It has a short thick body and dense fur, consisting of fine hairs and coarse, grooved spines (hence the common name “spiny rat”). The fur is brownish above and greyish white below with a faint orange tinge. The spines on the animal’s back are black throughout while the spines underneath are usually white with a rufous tip. The spines cover the body except for the regions around the mouth, ears, feet and tail. The tail is bicoloured for its entire length.
Very little is known about the ecology of this species.
Temperate forests. The United States Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. holds 13 specimens of this poorly known species, which were collected from thick shrubby forest with an undergrowth of coarse grasses and brake ferns.
Known from Okinawa in the Japanese Ryukyu Islands.
Unknown, although numbers are thought to be very low.
Unknown.
Classified as Critically Endangered (CR A1c, B1+2c) on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The major threats to this species are unknown. It occurs in limited areas of natural habitat that is expected to continue to deteriorate.
This species is legally protected, although there do not appear to be any specific conservation measures in place.
No official conservation recommendations have been made for this species.
Ishii, N. 2000. Tokudaia muenninki. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 01 December 2006.
Nowak, R.M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London.
Distribution map based on data provided by the IUCN Global Mammal Assessment.
Nowak, R.M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London.
Distribution map based on data provided by the IUCN Global Mammal Assessment.
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