Dasymys

Dasymys
Temporal range: Late Pliocene to Recent
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Subfamily: Murinae
Genus: Dasymys
Peters, 1875
Species

about 11, see text

Dasymys is a genus of semiaquatic rodents in the subfamily Murinae, the Old World rats and mice. The genus is endemic to Africa.[1]

These rats are wetland habitat specialists, occurring in marshy areas with wet ground and thick vegetation, such as swamps and vleis. They swim well. They are nocturnal and solitary.[2] Species are more common in the northern regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, likely because their wetland habitat is more degraded in southern regions.[3]

The genus is not well studied and its taxonomy is not clear. The number of species and their relationships have only been tentatively determined.[2]

Species include:

References

  1. Monatsb. K. Preuss. Akad. Wiss., Berlin: 12. In: Wilson, D. E. & D. M. Reeder. (eds.) 2005. Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed). Johns Hopkins University Press. 2005.
  2. 1 2 Mullin, S. K., et al. (2004). Skull size and shape of Dasymys (Rodentia, Muridae) from sub-Saharan Africa. Mammalia 68(2-3), 185-220.
  3. Mullin, S. K., et al. (2005). The distribution of the water rat Dasymys (Muridae) in Africa: a review. South African Journal of Science 101(3), 117-24.


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