264.

Black-tailed Deermouse

Peromyscus melanurus

French: Péromyscus a queue noire / German: Schwarzschwanz-Hirschmaus / Spanish: Raton ciervo de cola negra

Other common names: Black-tailed Mouse

Taxonomy. Peromyscus megalops melanurus Osgood, 1909, “Pluma, Oaxaca, Mexico. Altitude 4600 feet [= 1402 m].”

Peromyscus melanurus is in the megalops species group. Monotypic.

Distribution. Sierra Madre del Sur, Oaxaca, Mexico.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 111-133 mm, tail 127-145 mm, ear 15-18 mm, hindfoot 26-29 mm; weight 40-60 g. The Black-tailed Deermouse is one of the larger species of Peromyscus . Dorsum is brown to ocherous, venteris light to white, and feet are white. Tail is considerably longer than head-body length and typically uniform black. It is morphologically most similar the Broad-faced Deermouse (FP. megalops), but the Black-tailed Deermouse is smaller and has shorter and lighter pelage. The Blacktailed Deermouse has strongly beaded supraorbital ridges and no pectoral spots. Its karyotype is distinct, with submetacentric X chromosome.

Habitat. Pine-oak forests and tropical subdeciduous forests at elevations of 700-1900 m.

Food and Feeding. The Black-tailed Deermouse probably eats seeds, acorns,fruit, insects, and other small invertebrates.

Breeding. The Black-tailed Deermouse can reproduce year-round. Gestation lasts 21— 40 days; average littersize is 2-3 young.

Activity patterns. The Black-tailed Deermouse is presumably nocturnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Castro-Arellano (2014c), Goodwin (1969), Hall (1981), Huckaby (1980), Musser & Carleton (2005), Nowak (1999), Osgood (1909), Robertson (1975), Smith et al. (1986).