''Petromus'' is a genus of
hystricognath rodents
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are nat ...
that contains the
dassie rat ''(Petromus typicus)'' of southwestern
Africa, the only extant member of this group and the entire family
Petromuridae.
Two fossil species are known from the
Pliocene, with the oldest being ''
Petromus antiquus'' of the Early Pliocene.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q10804847
Hystricognath rodents
Rodent genera
Mammal genera with one living species
Taxa named by Andrew Smith (zoologist)