Oryzomys couesi Alston 1876
Creators: name: Wilson, Don E.
name: Reeder, DeeAnn
Publisher: name: The Johns Hopkins University Press
Year: 2005
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Rodentia
Cricetidae
Oryzomys
Oryzomys couesi

description: Oryzomys couesi Alston 1876
Oryzomys couesi Alston 1876, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1876: 756.
Type Locality: Guatemala, Alta Verapaz Dept., Cobán.
Vernacular Names: Coues' Oryzomys.
Synonyms: Oryzomys albiventer Merriam 1901; Oryzomys antillarum Thomas 1898; Oryzomys apatelius Elliot 1904; Oryzomys aquaticus J. A. Allen 1891; Oryzomys aztecus Merriam 1901; Oryzomys azuerensis Bole 1937; Oryzomys bulleri J. A. Allen 1897; Oryzomys cozumelae Merriam 1901; Oryzomys crinitus Merriam 1901; Oryzomys fulgens Thomas 1893; Oryzomys gatunensis Goldman 1912; Oryzomys goldmani Merriam 1901; Oryzomys jalapae J. A. Allen and Chapman 1897; Oryzomys lambi Burt 1934; Oryzomys mexicanus J. A. Allen 1897; Oryzomys molestus Elliot 1903; Oryzomys peninsulae Thomas 1897; Oryzomys peragrus Merriam 1901; Oryzomys pinicola A. Murie 1932; Oryzomys regillus Goldman 1915; Oryzomys richardsoni J. A. Allen 1910; Oryzomys richmondi Merriam 1901; Oryzomys rufinus Merriam 1901; Oryzomys rufus Merriam 1901; Oryzomys teapensis Merriam 1901; Oryzomys zygomaticus Merriam 1901.
Distribution: Extreme S Texas, USA; México, excluding NC plateau region, south through most of Central America (see Platt et al., 2000, for Belize records), to NW Colombia (see Hershkovitz, 1987); including Jamaica, Isla Cozumel, and allopatric populations in S Baja California Sur (peninsulae) and WC Sonora (lambi).
Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).
Discussion: Retained as a species by Goldman (1918) until Hall (1960) considered it only subspecifically distinct from O. palustris. Benson and Gehlbach (1979) returned O. couesi to specific status based on morphological contrasts with O. p. texensis in supposed area of intergradation; protein electrophoresis corroborates their lack of hybridization and genetic distinctiveness in sympatry (Schmidt and Engstrom, 1994). Karyotype reported by Benson and Gehlbach (1979) and Haiduk et al. (1979); morphometric comparisons with O. palustris by Humphrey and Setzer (1989). Alvarez-Castañeda (1994) discussed the indigenous status and possible extinction of the population (peninsulae) isolated near the tip of Baja California.
Following Hall’s (1960) example, other insular or localized subspecies—namely, antillarum, azuerensis, cozumelae, fulgens, gatunensis, and peninsulae (see Handley, 1966 a; Hershkovitz, 1971; Jones and Lawlor, 1965)—were swept under O. palustris; they are here included in O. couesi because of geographic proximity. A composite of at least three species, the Mesoamerican populations referred to " couesi," as well as O. dimidiatus and O. gorgasi, should be critically reviewed (also see Sánchez et al., 2001).
description: Published as part of Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn, 2005, Order Rodentia - Family Cricetidae, pp. 955-1189 in Mammal Species of the World: a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3 rd Edition), Volume 2, Baltimore :The Johns Hopkins University Press on page 1147, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7316535