Abrothrix longipilis
Creators: name: Don E. Wilson
name: Russell A. Mittermeier
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Cricetidae
Abrothrix
Abrothrix longipilis

description: 686.
LLong-haired Soft-haired Mouse
Abrothrix longipilis
French: Abrothrix a long poil / German: LanghaarAndenfeldmaus / Spanish: Raton de pelaje suave de pelo largo
Other common names: Long-haired Akodont, Long-haired Grass Mouse
Taxonomy. Mus (Abrothrix) longipilis Waterhouse, 1837, “ Coquimbo,” Coquimbo, Chile.
Abrothrix longipilis is the type species of the genus and subgenus Abrothrix. Formerly included A. hirta which has been recently elevated to species status. Monotypic.
Distribution. C Chile.
Descriptive notes. Head-body 130-138 mm, tail 83-96 mm, ear 20 mm, hindfoot 28-30 mm; weight 45-65 g. Abrothrix includes small to medium abrotrichines with long and soft fur; dark dorsal color, sometimes with median reddish band; venter is whitish to nearly as dark as dorsum; claws are moderately long, keeled for about one-third to one-half of their length; and rostrum is long and narrow. Chromosomal complement is 2n = 52, FN = 56. The Long-haired Soft-haired Mouse is a large, heavy-bodied species of Abrothrix, with small, thinly haired ears; long, loose pelage; and tail not exceeding three-fourths head-body length. Overall color is mainly light brownish, rather coarsely mixed with grayish; sides are only slightly or not at all more grayish than dorsum; underparts are completely gray; and feet and tail are dark.
Habitat. Coastal and inland valley semiarid shrublands and Andean piedmont in the Central Chilean Mediterranean ecoregion.
Food and Feeding. The Long-haired Soft-haired Mouse is omnivorous; different studies revealed high proportions of seeds, insects, and plant material and variable consumption of fungi in diets. In Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park, Chile, the Long-haired Softhaired Mouse was strongly insectivorous but eat some foliage and seeds in certain months.
Breeding. Males with scrotal testes were recorded each month of the year, but pregnant females were recorded only in August and February. Females had 4-5 embryos.
Activity patterns. The Long-haired Soft-haired Mouse is terrestrial and mostly nocturnal.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. At Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park, home ranges of Long-haired Soft-haired Mice averaged 46-8 m. Home ranges of males and females overlapped extensively, but those of females did not overlap each other and were remarkably consistent in their location from one season to the next. Long-haired Soft-haired Mice have high survival rates throughout the year.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern by The IUCN Red List (including A. hirta).
Bibliography. Bozinovic & Munoz-Pedreros (1995), D’Elia, Pardinas & Patterson (2016a), Fulk (1975), Glanz (1977), Iriarte et al. (1989), Jiménez et al. (1992), Kelt et al. (2004), Mann (1978), Meserve (1978, 1981a, 1981b), Meserve & Glanz (1978), Meserve & Le Boulengé (1987), Meserve, Milstead & Gutiérrez (2001), Meserve, Milstead, Gutiérrez & Jaksic (1999), Osgood (1943a), Palma, Cancino & Rodriguez-Serrano (2010), Patterson et al. (2015), Reig (1987), Schamberger & Fulk (1974), Silva (2005), Teta et al. (2017), Waterhouse (1837).
description: Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Cricetidae, pp. 204-535 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on pages 509-510, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6707142