Description
This rodent is about 5 in long with a 4-in tail. The ears are large and pointed at the tip. The whiskers are numerous and some are very long. The hairy tail is covered with longer hairs towards the end, making the tail wider at the tip. The hairs arise on the sides towards the base of the tail (an arrangement termed as "subdistichous") giving the tail a slightly flattened appearance. The pollux ("thumb") and hallux ("big toe") are without claws. The skull is broad and flat above and the infraorbital foramen is large. They are brownish above and whitish below with a distinct border. The feet are whitish. The tip of the tail is sometimes whitish, but is otherwise like the colour of the back. The fur on the back has scattered broad and flat spiny hairs with white tips. Finer spines are also found on the fur of the underside.Taxonomy and systematics
The genus name is derived from the flattened (''platy-'') spines (Greek ''acantha''), while ''mus'' refers to a mouse. The species name ''lasiurus'' is based on the Greek ''lasios'' for hairy and ''—oura'' for tail. The position of this species has been puzzled on from very early times. In 1860, Sclater exhibited a specimen noting it as a new dormouse from the Malabar. As early as 1865, this position was disputed on the basis of the dental formula. Peters (1865) suggested that the species was unrelated to the dormice and suggested that they should be placed with the murine genera of India. This position in the family Muridae was used in ''The Fauna of British India'' (1891). Palmer (1897) placed the subfamily Platacanthomyinae within the Gliridae. but Ellerman (1940) placed the genus in the subfamily Platacanthomyinae under the family Muscardinidae. Nowak (1999) places the subfamily within the Muridae and includes the genus '' Typhlomys'' in this subfamily. The exact phylogenetic relations of ''Platacanthomys'' have not been examined using sequence based approaches although ''Typhlomys'' has been confirmed to belong within the Muroid clade. A fossil from the late Miocene (about 9 Mya) of China has been described as ''Platacanthomys dianensis''.Distribution
The species is found only in the denser forest regions of the Western Ghats and the Nilgiri hills. They are found in altitudes up to 2000 m (such as atBehaviour and ecology
The species is nocturnal and is largely frugivorous. A specimen in captivity fed voraciously on a diet of fruits. When sleeping, it curls its body, hedgehog-like, with its tail protruding. The species is believed to feed on pepper in plantations, but trapping surveys suggest they are mainly restricted to undisturbed forest habitats. Four young have been noted in one litter.References
Further reading
* Jayson E.A. 2006. Status, distribution, food and feeding of Malabar Spiny Dormouse (''Platacanthomys lasiurus'' Blyth) in the Western Ghats of Kerala. KFRI Research Report No. 293. Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi. 118 p.External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1572813 Oriental dormice Rodents of India Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats Mammals described in 1859 Taxa named by Edward Blyth