86. Chinese dormouse (Dryomys sichuanensis) EN
This species is similar in appearance to the mouse-like dormice (Myomimus spp.). It is nocturnal and arboreal, nesting in small trees 3-3.5 metres above the ground. Its exact diet is not known, although the stomachs of the two captured specimens contained a mixture of green vegetation and starch. It inhabits sub-alpine mixed forests and is known only from Wanglang Nature Reserve, which was established in 1963 to protect the giant panda and its habitat.
Urgent Conservation Actions
No official conservation recommendations have been made for this species.
Distribution
Sichuan Province, China.
 
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Evolutionary Distinctiveness
Order: Rodentia
Family: Myoxidae
The family Myoxidae (also known as Gliridae) contains 28 species in 9 genera. It is an ancient family, thought to have originated sometime during the middle Eocene (45 million years ago). In the Pleistocene (1.8 million to 10,000 years ago), giant species lived on some of the Mediterranean islands. Living dormice are intermediate in form and behaviour between mice and squirrels. There are four species of forest dormouse (genus Dryomys): woolly dormouse (D. laniger), forest dormouse (D. nitedula), Neithammer's dormouse (D. niethammeri), and Chinese dormouse (D. sichuanensis). The Chinese dormouse is morphologically distinct from the other three, and is sometimes placed in the separate genus Chaetocauda.
Description
Size: Head and body length: 90- 91 mm
Tail length: 92-102 mm
Weight: 24.5-36 g
This species is similar in appearance to the mouse-like dormice (Myomimus spp.). Its upperparts are a reddish-brown colour mixed with grey, and its underparts, inner limbs and feet are white. The fur is a dark chestnut colour around the eyes. The tail is thicker at the end and is covered in dense hairs.
Ecology
A nocturnal and arboreal species, which nests in small trees 3-3.5 metres above the ground. Its exact diet is not known, although the stomachs of the two captured specimens contained a mixture of green vegetation and starch.
Habitat
The species has been taken at elevations of about 2,500 m in subalpine mixed forest.
Distribution
Known only from Wanglang Natural Reserve in northern Sichuan Province, China.
Population Estimate
Unknown.
Status
Classified as Endangered (EN B1+2c) on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Threats
Unknown.
Conservation Underway
Occurs in Wanglang Nature Reserve, which was established in 1963 to protect the giant panda and its habitat.
Conservation Proposed
No official conservation recommendations have been made for this species.
References
Baillie, J. 1996. Dryomys sichuanensis. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 09 August 2006.

Nowak, R.M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London.

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