The

rodent 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 na ...

subfamily Rhizomyinae includes the

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

bamboo rat 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, '' ...

s and certain of the

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

mole-rat Mole-rat or mole rat can refer to several groups of burrowing Old World rodents: * Bathyergidae, a family of about 20 hystricognath species in six genera from Africa also called blesmols. *'' Heterocephalus glaber'', the naked mole-rat. * Spalaci ...

s. The subfamily is grouped with the Spalacinae and the Myospalacinae into a family of

fossorial A fossorial () animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily, but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, meerkats, and mole salamanders, as well as many beetles, wasps, and bees. Prehistoric eviden ...

muroid rodents The Muroidea are a large superfamily of rodents, including mice, rats, voles, hamsters, lemmings, gerbils, and many other relatives. Although the Muroidea originated in Eurasia, they occupy a vast variety of habitats on every continent excep ...

basal to the other Muroidea. The group includes 17 species classified in 3 genera and 2 tribes: *Subfamily Rhizomyinae **Tribe Rhizomyini - Bamboo rats ***Genus ''

Rhizomys ''Rhizomys'', also known as bamboo rat, is a genus of rodents in the family Spalacidae. ''Rhizomys'' are all stocky burrowers with short, naked tails, and contains the following species: * Hoary bamboo rat (''R. pruinosus'') * Chinese bamboo ...

'' **** Hoary bamboo rat, ''Rhizomys pruinosus'' ****

Chinese bamboo rat The Chinese bamboo rat (''Rhizomys sinensis'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae found in southern China, northern Myanmar, and northern Vietnam. Its habitat is bamboo thickets usually at high elevations, pine forests, and plantati ...

, ''Rhizomys sinensis'' ****

Large bamboo rat The large bamboo rat, Sumatran rat, or Indomalayan rat (''Rhizomys sumatrensis'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae found in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. It is one of four species of ...

, ''Rhizomys sumatrensis'' ***Genus '' Cannomys'' ****

Lesser bamboo rat The lesser bamboo rat (''Cannomys badius'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Cannomys''. It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Thailand. Description T ...

, ''Cannomys badius'' **Tribe Tachyoryctini ***Genus ''

Tachyoryctes ''Tachyoryctes'' is a genus of rodent in the family Spalacidae. It contains the following species: * Ankole African mole-rat (''T. ankoliae'') * Mianzini African mole-rat (''T. annectens'') * Aberdare Mountains African mole-rat (''T. audax'') * D ...

'' - African mole-rats ****

Ankole African mole-rat The Ankole mole-rat or Ankole African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes ankoliae'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae found in southwestern Uganda and northwestern Tanzania. Its natural habitats are moist savanna and arable land Arable la ...

, ''Tachyoryctes ankoliae'' ****

Mianzini African mole-rat The Mianzini mole-rat or Mianzini African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes annectens'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitats are dry savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i. ...

, ''Tachyoryctes annectens'' ****

Aberdare Mountains African mole-rat The Aberdare Mountains African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes audax'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests and subtropical or tropical high-altitude g ...

, ''Tachyoryctes audax'' ****

Demon African mole-rat The northeast African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes splendens'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae and is found in Ethiopia, Somalia, and northwest Kenya. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, dry savann ...

, ''Tachyoryctes daemon'' ****

Kenyan African mole-rat The Kenyan African mole-rat or Kenyan mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes ibeanus'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae. It is endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitats are dry savanna, moist savanna, arable land, pastureland, plantations, rural g ...

, ''Tachyoryctes ibeanus'' ****

Big-headed African mole-rat The big-headed African mole rat, (''Tachyoryctes macrocephalus''), also known as the giant root-rat, Ethiopian African mole rat, or giant mole rat, is a rodent species in the family Spalacidae. It is endemic to Ethiopia's Bale Mountains. Its na ...

, ''Tachyoryctes macrocephalus'' ****

Navivasha African mole-rat The Naivasha African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes naivashae'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae. It is endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, moist savanna, arable land, and pasturel ...

, ''Tachyoryctes naivashae'' ****

King African mole-rat The King African mole-rat,Musser and Carleton, 2005, p. 924 King mole-rat, or Alpine mole-rat, (''Tachyoryctes rex'') is a burrowing rodent in the genus ''Tachyoryctes'' of family Spalacidae. It only occurs high on Mount Kenya, where it is ...

, ''Tachyoryctes rex'' ****

Rwanda African mole-rat The Rwanda mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes splendens'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae found in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, subtrop ...

, ''Tachyoryctes ruandae'' ****

Rudd's African mole-rat Rudd's mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes ruddi'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae. It is found in Kenya and Uganda. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, subtro ...

, ''Tachyoryctes ruddi'' ****

Embi African mole-rat The Embi mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes spalacinus'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, moist savanna, arable land, pastureland, plantations, and h ...

, ''Tachyoryctes spalacinus'' ****

Northeast African mole-rat The northeast African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes splendens'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae and is found in Ethiopia, Somalia, and northwest Kenya. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, dry savann ...

, ''Tachyoryctes splendens'' ****

Storey's African mole-rat Storey's African mole-rat (''Tachyoryctes storeyi'') is a species of rodent in the family Spalacidae endemic to Kenya. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland. Some taxonomic authorities consider it to be conspecific ...

, ''Tachyoryctes storeyi'' Note that the Rhizomyinae do not include two other groups which also have the common name mole rats and are also found in Africa. The closely related subfamily

Spalacinae The blind mole-rats, also known as the fossorial or subterranean mole rats, are a subfamily (Spalacinae) of rodents in the family Spalacidae, found in eastern Europe and Western Asia, western & central Asia. The Hystricognathi, hystricognath mole ...

consists of mole-like rodents found in Africa and the Middle East; these are also Myomorphic rodents. The family Bathyergidae, or African mole-rats (including the well-known

naked mole-rat The naked mole-rat (''Heterocephalus glaber''), also known as the sand puppy, is a burrowing rodent native to the Horn of Africa and parts of Kenya, notably in Somali regions. It is closely related to the blesmols and is the only species in th ...

), belong to the other major division of the rodents, the Hystricomorphs. All the rhizomyines are bulky, slow-moving, burrowing animals, the ''Rhizomys'' species being the largest and stockiest. They vary in length from 150 to 480 mm (head and body) with a tail of 50 to 200 mm, and their weights are from 150 g to 4 kg, depending on the species. They mainly feed on the underground parts of plants, which they reach from foraging burrows. They are rarely active above ground, and if they do come out of their extensive burrow systems, it is at twilight or during the night. They are similar to the

pocket gopher Pocket gophers, commonly referred to simply as gophers, are burrowing rodents of the family Geomyidae. The roughly 41 speciesSearch results for "Geomyidae" on thASM Mammal Diversity Database are all endemic to North and Central America. They are ...

s but lack cheek pouches. All are to some extent agricultural pests, attacking food crops, and are therefore hunted; the Asian species are eaten in the areas where they are found, while the skins of the African species are used as

amulet An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word amuletum, which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q597550 Spalacidae Mammal subfamilies