64.

Bocage’s Fat Mouse

Steatomys bocager

French: Rat-adipeux de Bocage / German: Bocage-Fettmaus / Spanish: Ratén grueso de Bocage

Other common names: Bocage's African Fat Mouse

Taxonomy. Steatomys bocage: Thomas, 1892,

Caconda, Angola.

Steatomys bocagei was previously included in S. pratensis . Monotypic.

Distribution. SW DR Congo and Angola.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 97-124 mm, tail 52-72 mm, hindfoot 18-20 mm. No specific data are available for ear length or body weight. Bocage’s Fat Mouse is medium-sized but large for a species of Steatomys . Tail is noticeable short and hairy, darker above than below. Fur is reddish brown dorsally, clearly demarcated from pure white belly. Chin, throat, and upper chest are white. Ears are relatively large and rounded. Limbs are white, with four digits on forefoot and five digits on hindfoot. It has eight nipples.

Habitat. Moist savannas and woodlands,typically above elevations of 500 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Poorly known. Bocage’s Fat Mouseis terrestrial and excavates its own burrow.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Cabral (1966), Crawford-Cabral (1998), Happold (2013i), Monadjem et al. (2015).