The African dormice (genus ''Graphiurus'') are

dormice A dormouse is a rodent of the family Gliridae (this family is also variously called Myoxidae or Muscardinidae by different taxonomists). Dormice are nocturnal animals found in Africa, Asia, and Europe. They are named for their long, dormant hi ...

that live throughout sub-Saharan Africa in a variety of habitats. They are very agile climbers and have bushy tails. They eat

invertebrates Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...

and small

vertebrates Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, wi ...

Species

Genus ''Graphiurus'', African dormice *

Angolan African dormouse The Angolan African dormouse (''Graphiurus angolensis'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. Found in central and north Angola and western Zambia, it has been recorded from seven localities over an altitudinal range from above sea le ...

, ''Graphiurus angolensis'' * Christy's dormouse, ''Graphiurus christyi'' * Jentink's dormouse, ''Graphiurus crassicaudatus'' *

Johnston's African dormouse The Johnston's African dormouse (''Graphiurus johnstoni'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitat is moist savanna. References *Holden, M. E.. 2005. Family Gliridae. pp.&nb ...

, ''Graphiurus johnstoni'' *

Kellen's dormouse Kellen's dormouse (''Graphiurus kelleni'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is native to tropical Africa where its range extends from the Gambia and Senegal to Kenya and Tanzania. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical ...

, ''Graphiurus kelleni'' *

Lorrain dormouse The Lorrain dormouse (''Graphiurus lorraineus'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, ...

, ''Graphiurus lorraineus'' *

Small-eared dormouse The small-eared dormouse (''Graphiurus microtis'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Sudan, Eswatini, Tanzania, Zambia, ...

, ''Graphiurus microtis'' *

Monard's dormouse Monard's dormouse (''Graphiurus monardi'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and possibly Zambia. Its natural habitat is moist Central Zambezian miombo woodlands The Central ...

, ''Graphiurus monardi'' *

Woodland dormouse The woodland dormouse (''Graphiurus murinus'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is native to southern and eastern Africa and is also known as the African dormouse, African dwarf dormouse, African pygmy dormouse, or colloquially ...

, ''Graphiurus murinus'' *

Nagtglas's African dormouse The Nagtglas's African dormouse (''Graphiurus nagtglasii'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and possibly Gabon. Its natural habitat is subtr ...

, ''Graphiurus nagtglasii'' *

Spectacled dormouse The spectacled dormouse or ''namtap'' (''Graphiurus ocularis'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae, and one of four dormouse species endemic to South Africa. It has a bushy, squirrel-like tail, a fairly short muzzle, small ears an ...

, ''Graphiurus ocularis'' *

Rock dormouse The rock dormouse or flat-headed African dormouse (''Graphiurus platyops'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini, Zambia, and Zimbabwe where it lives among rocks in upland are ...

, ''Graphiurus platyops'' *

Stone dormouse The stone dormouse (''Graphiurus rupicola'') is a species of rodent in the family Gliridae. It is found in Namibia, South Africa, and possibly Angola. Its natural habitat is rocky areas in the Karoo. Though it has a limited range, it is a fairly ...

, ''Graphiurus rupicola'' * Silent dormouse, ''Graphiurus surdus'' *''

Graphiurus walterverheyeni Walter Verheyen's African dormouse (''Graphiurus walterverheyeni'') is a monotypic species of rodent in the family Gliridae. From the Central Congolian lowland forests ecoregion in the central Congo Basin, it has been found in west-central Democ ...

''Systematic Revision of Sub-Saharan African Dormice (Rodentia: Gliridae: Graphiurus) Part II: Description of a New Species of Graphiurus from the Central

Congo Basin The Congo Basin (french: Bassin du Congo) is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It c ...

, Including Morphological and Ecological Niche Comparisons with G. crassicaudatus and G. lorraineus
Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 331 :314-355. 2009
'

Gallery

Image:Graphiurus_spec_-murinus-3.jpg, ''Graphiurus'' sp. (probably ''murinus'') – male Image:Graphiurus_spec_-murinus-2.jpg, ''Graphiurus'' sp. (probably ''murinus'') – three males in a knot-hole Image:Graphiurus_spec_-murinus-4.jpg, ''Graphiurus'' sp. (probably ''murinus'') – two adults eating a nectarine

References

Rodent genera {{rodent-stub