The rufous-bellied bolo mouse or white-chinned akodont, (''Necromys lactens'') is a species of

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 ...

in the family

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 m ...

. It is found in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

where it inhabits the dry valleys of the eastern Andes. Its conservation status is listed by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

Description

The rufous-bellied bolo mouse reaches a head-and-body length of with a tail of . The head and back are a buffy-brown with fine streaks of black. The flanks are more richly coloured, reddish-brown or cinnamon, and the underparts are a variable shade of cinnamon. The ears are well-haired and there is nearly always a white spot on the chin or throat. The tail is two-coloured, blackish brown above and whitish or buff below. The claws are long and are concealed in tufts of white hair.

Distribution and habitat

The rufous-bellied bolo mouse is native to the eastern slopes of the Andes in central and southern Bolivia and northern Argentina. Its typical habitat is

puna grassland The puna grassland ecoregion, of the montane grasslands and shrublands biome, is found in the central Andes Mountains of South America. It is considered one of the eight Natural Regions in Peru,Pulgar Vidal, Javier: Geografía del Perú; Las Ocho ...

in dry valleys. In Bolivia it occurs between about , and in Argentina, between about .

Status

The rufous-bellied bolo mouse is a common species in appropriate habitat in its wide range. It is tolerant of some degree of habitat modification, with some of the

being increasingly used for cattle grazing, but it does not adapt to living in cropland. The

has assessed its conservation status as being of "

", believing that any population decline is not sufficiently rapid as to warrant putting it in a more threatened category.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q306214 Necromys Mammals of Argentina Mammals of Bolivia Mammals described in 1918 Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas Taxonomy articles created by Polbot