Abrocoma schistacea Thomas 1921
Creators: name: Wilson, Don E.
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
name: Mittermeier, Russell A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Abrocomidae
Abrocoma
Abrocoma schistacea

description: 8. Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat <i>Abrocoma schistacea</i> <b>French:</b> Abrocome du Tontal / <b>German:</b> Sierra-del-Tontal-Chinchillaratte / <b>Spanish:</b> Rata chinchilla de Tontal <b>Other common names:</b> Sierra Tontal Chinchilla Rat <b>Taxonomy.</b> Abrocoma schistacea Thomas, 1921, “Los Sombreros, Sierra Tontal. Alt. 2700 m,” San Juan, Argentina. Abrocoma schistacea is one of six species in the “ A. cinerea complex” that were formerly classified as subspecies. Monotypic. <b>Distribution.</b> WC Argentina (S San Juan), known only from the Sierra del Tontal. <b>Descriptive notes.</b> Head-body 160- 196 mm, tail 96-120 mm, ear 22-27 mm, hindfoot 25-30 mm; weight 164-180 g. Upper parts of the Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat are drab gray, with midline of back slightly darker; under parts are a similar gray but paler. Tail is bicolored,like back above and white below. Tops offeet are whitish, and claws are reduced in size. Greatest length of skull is 43-48 mm. There are epidermal denticles inside mouth under diastema, in front of the hard palate, similar to the Uspallata Chinchilla Rat. <b>Habitat.</b> Rocky terrain and chaparral shrublands of creosote bushes (Larrea nitida and L. dwaricata, Zygophyllaceae), Gymnophyton polycephalum (Apiaceae), and herbs. The Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat occurs in eastern pre-Andean foothills at elevations of 2115-2884 m, with a dry climate. <b>Food and Feeding.</b> The Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat is a specialist and selective herbivore that feeds on foliage of Larrea species (more than 80% of diet), even when other species are available. <b>Breeding.</b> There is no information available for this species. <b>Activity patterns.</b> There is no specific information available for this species, but the Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat is probably diurnal, with an early morning activity peak. <b>Movements, Home range and Social organization.</b> The Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Rat lives in cavities and galleries, with multiple entrances in rock crevices, in small colonies of 3—4 individuals. Groups included one adult male and two females, or two males and two females. Large latrines with crystalline accumulations of dried urine and feces accumulate below inhabited rock fissures. Observed nesting crevices were on east-facing slopes. One population had a density of 0-15 ind/ha and burrows averaged 127 m apart. <b>Status and Conservation.</b> Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. The Sierra del Tontal Chinchilla Ratis partly protected in El Leoncito National Park, where it may be relatively common because at least 25 specimens have been recorded there. <b>Bibliography.</b> Taraborelli et al. (2011), Thomas (1921b).
description: Published as part of <i>Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher, Jr &amp; Russell A. Mittermeier, 2016, Abrocomidae, pp. 488-497 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions</i> on page 497, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6581970