Dendromys mystacalis Heuglin 1863
Creators: name: Wilson, Don E.
name: Mittermeier, Russell A.
name: Thomas E. Lacher, Jr
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Nesomyidae
Dendromys
Dendromys mystacalis

description: 55. Chestnut African Climbing Mouse <i>Dendromus mystacalis</i> <b>French:</b> Dendromus de Heuglin / <b>German:</b> Kastanienbraune Klettermaus / <b>Spanish:</b> Raton trepador africano castano <b>Other common names:</b> Chestnut Climbing Mouse <b>Taxonomy.</b> Dendromys mystacalis Heuglin, 1863, Baschlo region, Ethiopia. Dendromus mystacalis may represent a species complex. In particular, the population from Ethiopia occurs in different habitat and elevations compared with populations elsewhere in its distribution and may represent a distinct species. Taxonomic significance of geographical variation in pelage also needs to be investigated. Monotypic. <b>Distribution.</b> Occurs widely in E &amp; S Africa (SW Angola E to S DR Congo, Zambia, extreme N Botswana, and Malawi, and S to Zimbabwe, C &amp; S Mozambique, Swaziland, and E South Africa; isolated populations occur in the highlands of Ethiopia, NE DR Congo and extreme S South Sudan E to S Uganda, SW Kenya, and NW Tanzania; also recorded in SE Tanzania. <b>Descriptive notes.</b> Head-body 47-80 mm, tail 64-101 mm, ear 7-18 mm, hindfoot 14— 20 mm; weight 4-11 g. The Chestnut African Climbing Mouse is small, with a very long prehensile tail. Tail is darker above than below. Fur is long, soft, and bright chestnutbrown dorsally and pure white ventrally; some populations have grayish ventral pelage. Base of each dorsal hair is dark gray. Thin or faint mid-dorsal stripe extends from neck to base oftail, which is absent in populations with grayish ventral pelage. Ears are relatively large and rounded. Limbs are adapted for climbing. Second to fourth digits of forelimbs have elongated claws, and first and fifth digits are greatly reduced. Hindlimb has second to fourth digits elongated, fifth digit long and opposable with a claw, and first digit greatly reduced. <b>Habitat.</b> Various grasslands and savannas, especially at elevations below 1000 m (except in Ethiopia). Vegetation cover immediately above the ground appears to be important to the Chestnut African Climbing Mouse. In Swaziland, tall Hyperthelia-Hyparrhenia grassland is favored, but it also occurs in thick tangles adjacent to wetlands and edges of Afro-montane forest. <b>Food and Feeding.</b> In Swaziland, the Chestnut African Climbing Mouse is omnivorous, eating green plant material, seeds, and insects. <b>Breeding.</b> In Zimbabwe, young Chestnut African Climbing Mice have been observed in nests during the rainy season. They build grass nests with multiple entrances, usually placed c.1 m aboveground in tall grass or a bush clump. They also use old bird nests, especially of the family Ploceidae. Litter sizes are 3-8 young. <b>Activity patterns.</b> The Chestnut African Climbing Mouse is nocturnal. It forages both terrestrially and on grass stalks and low bushes. In Swaziland, pairs were regularly captured in the same trap, suggesting that they forage together. <b>Movements, Home range and Social organization.</b> Densities of the Chestnut African Climbing Mouse can be high in appropriate habitat (2-5-19-8 ind/ha). <b>Status and Conservation.</b> Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red Lust. <b>Bibliography.</b> Adam et al. (2015), Avenant &amp; Kuyler (2002), Bekele (1996a), Denys &amp; Aniskine (2012), Dieterlen (2009), Fitzherbert et al. (2007), Lavrenchenko et al. (2017), Misonne (1963), Monadjem (1997b, 1998a, 1998b, 1999a, 1999b), Monadjem &amp; Perrin (2003), Monadjem etal. (2015), Musser &amp; Carleton (2005), Rautenbach, A. et al. (2014), Rautenbach, |.L. (1982), Skinner &amp; Chimimba (2005), Smithers &amp;Tello (1976), Smithers &amp; Wilson (1979), Solano et al. (2014), Stanley &amp; Goodman (2011).
description: Published as part of <i>Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier &amp; Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Nesomyidae, pp. 156-203 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions</i> on page 200, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6600357