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Cricetomyinae

(Subfamily)

Overview

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Pouched rats are a group of African rodents in the subfamily Cricetomyinae. They are members of the family Nesomyidae, which contains other African muroids such as climbing mice, Malagasy mice, and the white-tailed rat. All nesomyids are in the superfamily Muroidea, a large and complex clade containing 1/4 of all mammal species. Sometimes the pouched rats are placed in the family Muridae along with all other members of the superfamily Muroidea.

Pouched rats are found throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa with the exception of southern Africa. They are characterized by having large and a distinctive molar morphology. The molars are very similar to the type seen in the subfamily Murinae, but pouched rats probably evolved this similarity through convergent evolution.

There are three very different genera of pouched rats. The giant pouched rat is notable for being the largest of the muroids. A giant pouched rat was also implicated as a carrier in a small outbreak of monkeypox in the USA.

The subfamily Cricetomyinae contains three genera and eight species.

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Subfamily Cricetomyinae - Pouched rats

b>Pouched rats are a group of African rodents in the subfamily Cricetomyinae. They are members of the family Nesomyidae, which contains other African mu roids such as climbing mice, Malagasy mice, and the white-tailed rat. All nesomyids are in the superfamily Muroidea, a large and complex clade containing 1/4 of all mammal species. Sometimes the pouched rats are placed in the family Muridae along with all other members of the superfamily Muroidea.

Pouched rats are found throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa with the exception of southern Africa. They are characterized by having large and a distinctive molar morphology. The molars are very similar to the type seen in the subfamily Murinae, but pouched rats probably evolved this similarity through convergent evolution.

There are three very different genera of pouched rats. The giant pouched rat is notable for being the largest of the muroids. A giant pouched rat was also implicated as a carrier in a small outbreak of monkeypox in the USA.

The subfamily Cricetomyinae contains three genera and eight species.

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Subfamily Cricetomyinae - Pouched rat s

References

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Taxonomy

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The Subfamily Cricetomyinae is a member of the Family Muridae. Here is the complete "parentage" of Cricetomyinae:

The Subfamily Cricetomyinae is further organized into finer groupings including:

Genera

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Beamys

Beamys is a genus of rodent in the Nesomyidae family. It contains the following species: [more]

Cricetomys

The giant pouched rats (genus Cricetomys) of sub-Saharan Africa are large muroid rodents. Their head and body lengths range from 25?45 cm (9?18 in) with scaly tails ranging from 36?46 cm (14?18 in). They weigh between 1.0 and 1.5 kg. [more]

Saccostomus

Saccostomus is a genus of rodent in the Nesomyidae family. It contains the following species: [more]

At least 3 species and subspecies belong to the Genus Saccostomus.

More info about the Genus Saccostomus may be found here.

References

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Sources

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Last Revised: August 24, 2012
2012/08/24 13:47:18