Ctenomys andersoni Gardner, Salazar-Bravo & Cook 2014

1.

Anderson’s Tuco-tuco

Ctenomys andersoni

French: Tuco-tuco dAnderson / German: Anderson-Kammratte / Spanish: Tuco tuco de Anderson

Other common names: Anderson's Cujuchi

Taxonomy. Ctenomys andersoni Gardner, Salazar-Bravo & Cook, 2014,

“Bolivia, Department of Santa Cruz, Cerro Itahuaticua, 19°48’S, 63°31’'W, 810 m elevation.”

Initially named C. “ita” by E. P. Lessa and J. A. Cook in 1998. It has been recently assigned to the boliviensisspecies group, based on mtDNA analysis. Chromosomal complement is 2n = 46 and FN = 50, and the form of sperm is unknown. Monotypic.

Distribution. CS Bolivia, known only from the type locality at Cerro Itahuaticua at 800-1800 m altitude.

Descriptive notes. Total length 183-310 mm, tail 35-90 mm, ear 3—10 mm, hindfoot 21-41 mm; weight 83-360 g. Anderson’s Tuco-tuco is medium to large-sized. Dorsal fur is thick, buffy brown to mummy brown, with light olive brown stripe starting at head proceeding to back. Ventral pelage is pale olive buff, with basal neutral gray or deep neutral gray hairs and wash of pale olive-buff or buffy brown in superficial part, appearing clearer than dorsal fur. Skull is robust, zygomatic arches are broad, and auditory bullae are inflated. Nasal bones are broad, and mandible is robust showing a coronoid process falciform and angled strongly backward; condyloid process is also strong, bearing well-developed articulation flange. Upperincisors are large, proodont, and covered with orange enamel.

Habitat. Known only from type locality at Cerro Itahuaticua in south-central Bolivia. Vegetation is a mixture of deciduous thorny trees (Fabaceae) and several species of cacti, primarily Opuntia spp. Limestone outcrops are common on hillsides. This locality is in the ecoregion known as Andean Dry Valleys.

Food and Feeding. There is no information available for this species.

Breeding. There is no information available for this species.

Activity patterns. There is no information available for this species.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no information available for this species.

Status and Conservation. Anderson’s Tuco-tuco has not yet been assessed on The [UCN Red Lust.

Bibliography. Gardner et al. (2014), Lessa & Cook (1998), Mascheretti et al. (2000).