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Myodonta
The suborder Myomorpha contains 1,524 species of mouse-like rodents, nearly a quarter of all mammal species. Included are mouse, mice, rats, Gerbillinae, gerbils, hamsters, lemmings, and voles. They are grouped according to the structure of their jaws and Molar (tooth), molar teeth. They are characterized by their zygomasseteric system, myomorphous zygomasseteric system, which means that both their medial and lateral masseter muscles are displaced forward, making them adept at gnawing. As in the Hystricomorpha, hystricognathous rodents, the medial masseter muscle goes through the eye socket, a feature unique among mammals. Myomorphs are found worldwide (apart from Antarctica) in almost all land habitats. They are usually Nocturnal animal, nocturnal seed-eaters. Most myomorph species belong to the superfamily Muroidea: (hamsters, voles, lemmings, mouse, true mice, rat, true rats, and Gerbillinae, gerbils). *Superfamily Muroidea **Family Platacanthomyidae (Malabar spiny dormouse, s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ypresian
In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age (geology), age or lowest stage (stratigraphy), stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by the Eocene Lutetian Age. The Ypresian is consistent with the lower Eocene. Events The Ypresian Age begins during the throes of the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). The Fur Formation in Denmark, the Messel shales in Germany, the Oise amber of France and Cambay amber of India are of this age. The Eocene Okanagan Highlands are an uplands subtropical to temperate series of lakes from the Ypresian. Stratigraphic definition The Ypresian Stage was introduced in scientific literature by Belgium, Belgian geologist André Hubert Dumont in 1850. The Ypresian is named after the Flanders, Flemish city of Ypres in Belgium (spelled ''Ieper'' in Dutch). The definitions of the original stage were totally different from the modern ones. The Ypresi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nocturnal Animal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed senses of hearing, smell, and specially adapted eyesight. Some animals, such as cats and ferrets, have eyes that can adapt to both low-level and bright day levels of illumination (see metaturnal). Others, such as bushbabies and (some) bats, can function only at night. Many nocturnal creatures including tarsiers and some owls have large eyes in comparison with their body size to compensate for the lower light levels at night. More specifically, they have been found to have a larger cornea relative to their eye size than diurnal creatures to increase their : in the low-light conditions. Nocturnality helps wasps, such as ''Apoica flavissima'', avoid hunting in intense sunlight. Diurnal animals, including squirrels and songbirds, are active duri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Muridae
The Muridae, or murids, are the largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 1,383 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. The name Muridae comes from the Latin ' (genitive '), meaning "mouse", since all true mice belong to the family, with the more typical mice belonging to the genus '' Mus''. Distribution and habitat Murids are found nearly everywhere in the world, though many subfamilies have narrower ranges. Murids are not found in Antarctica or many oceanic islands. Although none of them are native to the Americas, a few species, notably the house mouse and black rat, have been introduced worldwide. Murids occupy a broad range of ecosystems from tropical forests to tundras. Fossorial, arboreal, and semiaquatic murid species occur, though most are terrestrial animals. The extensive list of niches filled by murids helps to explain their relative abundance. Diet and dentiti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cricetidae
The Cricetidae are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes true hamsters, voles, lemmings, muskrats, and New World rats and mice. At almost 608 species, it is the second-largest family of mammals, and has members throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. Characteristics The cricetids are small mammals, ranging from just in length and in weight in the New World pygmy mouse up to and in the muskrat. The length of their tails varies greatly in relation to their bodies, and they may be either furred or sparsely haired. The fur of most species is brownish in colour, often with a white underbelly, but many other patterns exist, especially in the cricetine and arvicoline subfamilies. Like the Old World mice, cricetids are adapted to a wide range of habitats, from the high Arctic to tropical rainforests and hot deserts. Some are arboreal, with long balancing tails and other adaptations for climbing, while others are semiaquatic, with w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dendromurinae
Dendromurinae is a subfamily of rodents in the family Nesomyidae and superfamily Muroidea. The dendromurines are currently restricted to Africa, as is the case for all extant members of the family Nesomyidae. The authorship of the subfamily has been attributed to both Alston, 1876, and (incorrectly) to G. M. Allen, 1939. Two genera, ''Dendromus'' and ''Steatomys'', are relatively common throughout most of sub-Saharan Africa. The remaining genera are relatively rare and have restricted geographic distributions. The link rat, ''Deomys ferugineus'', has been traditionally placed in this subfamily, but molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that it is more related to the spiny mice, genus '' Acomys''. The link rat is now placed in the family Muridae and subfamily Deomyinae. Only two of the currently recognized dendromurine genera, ''Dendromus'' and ''Steatomys'', have been studied in molecular analyses. Considering how distinct these genera are from one another, the placemen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nesomyinae
The Malagasy rodents are the sole members of the subfamily Nesomyinae. These animals are the only native rodents of Madagascar, come in many shapes and sizes, and occupy a wide variety of ecological niches. There are nesomyines that resemble gerbils, rats, mice, voles, and even rabbits. There are arboreal, terrestrial, and semi-fossorial varieties. These rodents are clearly most closely related to some muroid rodents found on the African mainland. Some molecular phylogeneticists consider this clade of Malagasy and African rodents to represent a distinct family, the Nesomyidae. Other researchers place the Nesomyinae into a large family, Muridae, along with all members of the superfamily Muroidea. It has been reported that the Nesomyinae is not monophyletic, but this has not been supported in other analyses. Additionally, there were problems with this particular study, notably the use of '' Calomyscus'' as an outgroup while more distantly related muroids ( rhyzomyines) were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nesomyidae
The Nesomyidae are a family of African rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes several subfamilies, all of which are native to either continental Africa or to Madagascar. Included in this family are Malagasy rodents, climbing mice, African rock mice, swamp mice, pouched rats, and the white-tailed rat. Characteristics Nesomyids are small- to medium-sized rodents, with the largest being the size of a rat. Physically, they may resemble mice, rats, voles, or hamsters, depending on the species and subfamily. Their diets vary from fairly strict herbivory to nearly pure insectivory. Their habits are similarly variable, with some species climbing trees, and others burrowing in the ground. They give birth to up to four young after a gestation period around six weeks. Classification Many of these animals were once thought to be related to other groups of muroid rodents, but this African-based clade has been proposed and confirmed on the basis of genetic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mouse-like Hamsters
200px, right 200px, Mouse-like hamster using its tail for balance while standing on a branch (a feat difficult for hamsters) Mouse-like hamsters are a group of small rodents found in Syria, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. They are found in rocky outcrops and semi-mountainous areas in desert regions. The mouse-like hamsters are not true hamsters, but represent an early split from the rest of the mouse-like rodents. They were once thought to be hamsters based on the shape of their molars, but they lack the cheek pouches, flank glands and short tails of the true hamsters. The closest relatives of the mouse-like hamsters may be the extinct Cricetodontidae. Because of their seemingly early break from the rest of the mouse-like rodents, mouse-like hamsters have been placed in a family of their own, Calomyscidae, and have been referred to as living fossils. All members of the genus were once considered part of the same species, ''Calomyscus bailwardi'', b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Calomyscidae
200px, right 200px, Mouse-like hamster using its tail for balance while standing on a branch (a feat difficult for hamsters) Mouse-like hamsters are a group of small rodents found in Syria, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. They are found in rocky outcrops and semi-mountainous areas in desert regions. The mouse-like hamsters are not true hamsters, but represent an early split from the rest of the mouse-like rodents. They were once thought to be hamsters based on the shape of their molars, but they lack the cheek pouches, flank glands and short tails of the true hamsters. The closest relatives of the mouse-like hamsters may be the extinct Cricetodontidae. Because of their seemingly early break from the rest of the mouse-like rodents, mouse-like hamsters have been placed in a family of their own, Calomyscidae, and have been referred to as living fossils. All members of the genus were once considered part of the same species, ''Calomyscus bailwardi'', b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bamboo Rats
The bamboo rats are four species of rodents of the subfamily Rhizomyinae. They are the sole living representatives of the tribe Rhizomyini. All are found in South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia. The species are: *The Chinese bamboo rat, ''Rhizomys sinensis'', found in central and southern China, northern Burma, and Vietnam; *The hoary bamboo rat, '' R. pruinosus'', found from Assam in India to southeastern China and the Malay Peninsula; *The Sumatra, Indomalayan, or large bamboo rat, ''R. sumatrensis'', found in Yunnan in China, Indochina, the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra. *The lesser bamboo rat, '' Cannomys badius'', found in Nepal, Assam, northern Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and northern Vietnam. Bamboo rats vary in size, from the lesser bamboo rat, which is typically long (head and body: tail length is ), and weighs from , to the Sumatra bamboo rat, which can reach lengths of nearly with a tail, and weighs up to . However, they are all bulky, slow-mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spalax
''Spalax'' is a genus of rodent in the family Spalacidae, subfamily ''Spalacinae'' (blind mole-rats). It is one of two extant genera in the subfamily Spalacinae, alongside ''Nannospalax''.'''' Species in this genus are found in eastern Europe and western & central Asia. They are completely blind and have a subterranean lifestyle. Taxonomy Prior to 2013, ''Spalax'' was widely considered the only member of Spalacinae, with all blind mole-rat species being grouped within it. However, phylogenetic and morphological evidence supported some of the species within it forming a distinct lineage that diverged from the others during the Late Miocene, when a marine barrier formed between Anatolia and the Balkans. These species were reclassified into the genus ''Nannospalax'', making ''Spalax'' one of two extant spalacine genera.'''' Species of genus ''Spalax'' *Mehely's blind mole-rat'', S. antiquus'' * Sandy blind mole-rat, ''S. arenarius'' * Giant blind mole-rat, ''S. giganteus'' *B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spalacidae
The Spalacidae, or spalacids, are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. They are native to eastern Asia, the Horn of Africa, the Middle East, and southeastern Europe. It includes the blind mole-rats, bamboo rats, mole-rats, and zokors. This family represents the oldest split (excluding perhaps the Platacanthomyidae) in the muroid superfamily, and comprises animals adapted to a subterranean way of life. These rodents were thought to have evolved adaptations to living underground independently until recent genetic studies demonstrated they form a monophyletic group. Members of the Spalacidae are often placed in the family Muridae along with all other members of the Muroidea. Characteristics Spalacids are mouse- to rat-sized rodents, adapted to burrowing and living underground. They have short limbs, wedge-shaped skulls, strong neck muscles, large incisor teeth, and small eyes and external ears. In the zokors, which dig primarily with their feet, rat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
