The common punaré (''Thrichomys apereoides''), is a species of spiny rat

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Description

Like other members of the genus ''

Thrichomys ''Thrichomys'' is a genus of South American rodents in the family Echimyidae. It contains at least five species, found in Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay. They are as follows: * ''Thrichomys apereoides'' - Common punaré * ''Thrichomys fosteri'' - ...

'', but unlike all other species of spiny rat, common punarés have no spines, and instead have a thick pelt of soft fur, which also extends for the full length of the tail. The fur is greyish-brown over most of the body, with whitish underparts and ears. There are also three pairs of small white spots on the face; one each above and below the eyes, and one at the base of the ears. They are the size of a large rat, measuring in length, not counting the tail. On average, they weigh , although males are slightly larger than females. Females have four teats, with one pair just behind the forelegs, and another in front of the hips.

Distribution and habitat

The common punaré is found only in eastern Brazil, where it inhabits a belt of relatively open

caatinga Caatinga () is a type of semi-arid tropical vegetation, and an ecoregion characterized by this vegetation in interior northeastern Brazil. The name "Caatinga" comes from the Tupi word '' ka'atinga'', meaning "white forest" or "white vegetat ...

and

cerrado The Cerrado () is a vast ecoregion of Tropics, tropical savanna in central Brazil, being present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Maranhão, Piauí, Bahia, Minas Gerais, São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Paraná ...

vegetation between the Amazonian and

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

Forests. It is found from the coasts of

Ceará Ceará (, ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. It is the List of Brazilian states by population, eighth-largest Brazilian State by ...

and

Rio Grande do Norte Rio Grande do Norte (, , ) is one of the states of Brazil. It is located in the northeastern region of the country, forming the northeasternmost tip of the South American continent. The name literally translates as "Great Northern River", refe ...

through all of the other states of the Northeast Region, and across much of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

in the south. Within this region, it inhabits mainly dry and rocky habitats. Although it was formerly thought that there were as many as five subspecies, some of these are now regarded as entirely separate species, and only two subspecies are still recognised: * ''Thrichomys apereoides apereoides'' - southern part of range * ''Thrichomys apereoides laurenteus'' - northern part of range

Behaviour and biology

Common punarés are active mainly around dawn, resting for the rest of the day in nests among rocky boulders, or taking temporary refuge in any available crevice. They inhabit

home range A home range is the area in which an animal lives and moves on a periodic basis. It is related to the concept of an animal's territory which is the area that is actively defended. The concept of a home range was introduced by W. H. Burt in 1943. ...

s of , defending them from rivals using a combination of erect and semi-erect

threat display Deimatic behaviour or startle display means any pattern of bluffing behaviour in an animal that lacks strong defences, such as suddenly displaying conspicuous eyespots, to scare off or momentarily distract a predator, thus giving the prey anima ...

s, kicking, wrestling, and chasing. They are agile animals, easily able to clamber through rugged and rocky terrain, and are also able to climb trees. They are herbivorous, and able to survive without drinking for at least eighteen days under laboratory conditions. In the wild, they can obtain additional water by eating prickly pear cactuses. They breed throughout the year, giving birth to a litter of, on average, three pups, after a gestation of about 97 days. The young weigh about at birth, and are born with open eyes and a full coat of fur. They begin to eat solid food within a few hours of birth, but are not fully weaned until about 28 days of age.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Common punare Thrichomys Rodents of Brazil Endemic mammals of Brazil Mammals described in 1839 Taxa named by Peter Wilhelm Lund