Mylomys rex

430.

Ethiopian Three-toed Grass Rat

Mylomys rex

French: Mylomys roi / German: Athiopien-Furchenzahnratte / Spanish: Rata de hierba de tres dedos de Etiopia

Other common names: Ethiopian Groove-toothed Rat, Ethiopian Mylomys, King Mylomys

Taxonomy. Arvicanthis rex Thomas, 1906,

Charada Forest, Kaffa, central Ethiopia.

Known only from holotype. M. rex was previously included variously in Arvicanthis and in Pelomys, but shown to belong to Mylomys. It is geographically disjunct from and larger in size than M. dybowskii. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known only from type locality in Ethiopia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 212 mm, tail 175 mm, ear 24 mm, hindfoot 35 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The Ethiopian Three-toed Grass Rat is a very large stoutly built rodent with coarse dark pelage and thicktail is similarlooking to a large Arvicanthis. Fur is speckled sandy brown above, redder around rump, contrasting sharply with bluish white on belly. Forefeet have three functional toes. Tail is long (83% of head-body length) and coarsely ringed.

Habitat. Montane forest.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Happold (2013a), Monadjem et al. (2015), Musser & Carleton (1993, 2005), Yalden & Largen {1992),