32.

Dudu’s Brush-furred Rat

Lophuromys dudui

French: Rat-hérissé de Dudu / German: Dudu-Biirstenhaarmaus / Spanish: Rata de pelaje de cepillo de Dudu

Taxonomy. Lophuromys dudui W. N. Verheyen et al., 2002,

Masako Forest Reserve, right bank of the Congo River near Kisangani, N DRCongo.

Lophuromys dudui has unique morphometric and molecular characteristics and belongs to the L. aquilus ( L. flavopunctatus) species group. Monotypic.

Distribution. N DR Congo, N of the Congo River.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 89-124 mm, tail 51-72 mm, ear 11-16 mm, hindfoot 17-21 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Dudu’s Brush-furred Ratis externally very similar to the Buff-spotted Brushfurred Rat ( L. flavopunctatus), but they have subtle differences in skull proportions.

Habitat. Mainly secondary lowland forest and fallow landsat elevationsless than 1000 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List. Dudu’s Brush-furred Rat is widely distributed, and large numbers of specimens have been collected suggesting it does not face any conservation threats. Farmers consider it an agricultural pest in the Kisangani region.

Bibliography. Amundala et al. (2008), Dieterlen (2008, 2013g), Katuala et al. (2008), Monadjem et al. (2015), Musser & Carleton (2005), Verheyen, Hulselmans, Dierckx & Verheyen (2002), Verheyen, Hulselmans, Dierckx, Mulungu et al. (2007).