The moon striped mouse or Ruwenzori hybomys (''Hybomys lunaris'') 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 n ...

in the family Muridae. It is found in

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

, Rwanda, and

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sou ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

Description

The moon striped mouse ranges from 10 to 16 centimeters (4-6.4 inches) in body length, with a tail length of 7–13.5 centimeters (2.8-5.4 inches). It weighs 30-70 grams (1-2.5 ounces).

Diet

The moon striped mouse feeds on a wide array of food, including

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

s, and

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

Reproduction

The moon striped mouse has a gestation period of 28–29 days, and gives birth to 2-3 young.

References

* * Van der Straeten, E. & Kerbis Peterhans, J. 2004.
Hybomys lunaris

2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Downloaded on 19 July 2007. Hybomys Rodents of Africa Mammals described in 1906 Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Murinae-stub