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Barbour’s Pygmy Rock Mouse

Petromyscus barbouri

French: Petromysque de Barbour / German: BarbourZwergfelsenmaus / Spanish: Raton de roca enano de Barbour

Other common names: Barbour’'s Rock Mouse, Namaqua Pygmy Rock Mouse

Taxonomy. Petromyscus barbouri Shortridge & Carter, 1938,

“ Witwater (Kamiesberg), Little Namaqualand,” South Africa.

Formerly considered a subspecies ofP. collinus but can be readily distinguished by unique morphological traits. Monotypic.

Distribution. Endemic to a narrow range in W South Africa.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 71-75 mm, tail 76-89 mm, ear 14-15 mm, hindfoot 17-19 mm; weight 14-16 g. Barbour’s Pygmy Rock Mouseis small, with a relatively long tail. Furis soft andsilky, grayish brown speckled with pale brown dorsally; venteris grayish. Hairs have dark gray bases. Ears are large and rounded. Tail is long, gray above and white below. Limbs are off-white, with four digits on forefeet andfive digits on hindfeet. It has four nipples.

Habitat. Rocky outcrops in arid environments with succulent vegetation.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Barbour’s Pygmy Rock Mouseis nocturnal andspecialized for climbing rocks.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Barbour’s Pygmy Rock Mouse occupies rocky habitat that is unlikely to becomethreatened in the near future.

Bibliography. Avery & Avery (2011), Coetzee (2013a), Denys et al. (1995), Jansa et al. (1999), Meester et al. (1986), Monadjem et al. (2015), Musser & Carleton (2005), Petter (1967), Skinner & Chimimba (2005).