23.

Angolan Brush-furred Rat

Lophuromys angolensis

French: Rat-hérissé d/Angola / German: Angola-Blrstenhaarmaus / Spanish: Rata de pelaje de cepillo de Angola

Taxonomy. Lophuromys angolensis W. N. Verheyen, Dierckx & Hulselmans, 2000,

Mwambala, DR Congo.

J. Crawford-Cabral in 1998 initially included L. angolensis in the sikapusi species group, but it was later recognized as distinct based on morphometric analysis. Monotypic.

Distribution. SW DR Congo (E of the Congo River) and NW Angola.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 115-154 mm, tail 51-88 mm, ear 15-18 mm, hindfoot 20-24 mm; weight 43-71 g. The Angolan Brush-furred Rat is very similar to the Western Brush-furrred Rat ( L. sikapusi) and Ansorge’s Brush-furred Rat ( L. ansorgei); they can be distinguished with morphometric analyses. The Angolan Brush-furred Rat is smaller than the Western Brushfurrred Rat and has narrow skull braincase, slender molar rows, and large choane (internal nostrils) breadth. The Angolan Brush-furred Rat is very similar to the Western Brush-furrred Rat, with dark brown dorsum, red belly, and short tail (50-70% of head-body length).

Habitat. [Lowland forests of the Congolese block and mountain forest up to elevations of ¢.2600 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. The Angolan Brushfurred Rat was considered a synonym of the Western Brush-furrred Rat, which was classified asLeast Concern.

Bibliography. Crawford-Cabral (1998), Monadjem etal. (2015), Verheyen et al. (2000).