Ctenomys minutus Nehring 1887
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Ctenomyidae
Ctenomys
Ctenomys minutus

description: 26.
Minute Tuco-tuco
Ctenomys minutus
French: Petit Tuco-tuco / German: Kleine Kammratte / Spanish: Tuco tuco diminuto
Other common names: Tiny Tuco-tuco
Taxonomy. Ctenomys minutus Nehring, 1887,
“stammen aus den ‘Campos’, welche sich ostlich von Mundo Novo.” Restricted by A. Langguth and A. Abella in 1970 to the oceanic coast at a resort near the mouth of the Rio Tramandahy, 98 km E of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil.
Ctenomys minutus can be classified in the torquatus-species group based on mtDNA and in the Eastern group based on biogeography. Chromosomal complement is 2n = 42, 46, 48, and 50 in two systems (A and B) and FN = 68-80. It has the highest chromosomal variability, with 45 different karyotypes recorded. Twelve haplo-groups have been found, formed by 52 haplotypes. Monotypic.
Distribution. S Brazil, coastal plains from Laguna Beach, in Santa Catarina State, to Sao José do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul State.
Descriptive notes. Total length 141 mm (males) and 157 mm (females), tail 74 mm, hindfoot 32 mm, and weight 193 g. The Minute Tuco-tuco is mediumsized. Overall color varies from medium to dark brown dorsally and light brown ventrally. Young individuals are usually paler than adults. Upper incisors are slightly proodont; auditory bullae are enlarged, but anteroposterior is constricted; interorbital region is proportionally broad; and braincase has weakly developed parasagittal ridge.
Habitat. Grasslands and dunes in areas near sea level.
Food and Feeding. In a study that used DNA meta-barcoding to compare diets of two species that are sympatric, 13 plant families were identified in diets of Minute Tucotucos, mainly Poaceae, Araliaceae, Asteraceae, and Fabaceae. These data suggested that the Minute Tuco-tuco was a generalist, with preferences for species of Poaceae, Asteraceae, and Araliaceae.
Breeding. Mating of the Minute Tuco-tuco occurs in July—October. Births start in September and end in December—January. Gestation is ¢.90 days, and individuals reach sexual maturity in c.6 months.
Activity patterns. There is no information available for this species.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Minute Tuco-tuco is solitary. Densities are 7-42 ind/ha, and adult sex ratios are biased toward females.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List.
Bibliography. Bidau (2015), Contreras & Bidau (1999), da Fonseca (2003), Freitas (1995a, 1997 2005, 2006), Freygang et al. (2004), Gava & Freitas (2002), Langguth & Abella (1970), Lopes, De Barba et al. (2015), Lopes, Ximenes et al. (2013), Nehring (1900a), Parada et al. (2011), Rebelato (2006), Reig et al. (1966), Rocha-Barbosa et al. (2013).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher, Jr & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2016, Ctenomyidae, pp. 498-534 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on pages 521-522, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6588177