601.

Tawny-bellied Climbing Rat

Rhipidomys fulviventer

French: Rhipidomys a ventre fauve / German: Ockerbauch-Neuweltklettermaus / Spanish: Rata trepadora de vientre leonado

Other common names: Buff-bellied Climbing Mouse, Tawny-bellied Rhipidomys

Taxonomy. Rhipidomys fulviventer Thomas, 1896, “Agua Dulce, W. Cundinamarca, Colombia.”

Rhapidomys fulviventer is treated as monotypic; however several authors agree that it is a species complex. If the northern populations to Tachira Depression are found to be genetically distinct, R. f. elatturus coined by W. H. Osgood in 1914 would be the appropriate name. Records from north-western Peru (Bongara, Amazonas Region) need taxonomical confirmation.

Distribution. Extreme SW Venezuela (Paramo de Tama) and E Andes Range in C Colombia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 88-112 mm, tail 107-133 mm, ear 19-26 mm, hindfoot 22-26 mm; weight 25-46 g. The Tawny-bellied Climbing Rat is small, with long, soft, and sleek fur. Dorsal pelage is brown, often with olive tint. Ventral pelage has gray bases and pale tips, usually with orange suffusion. Tail is longer than head-body length and generally medium to dark, with slightly paler proximal area on venter. Ears are darker than dorsum. Hindfeet are relatively narrow, with dark metatarsal patch often indistinctly delineated. Rostrum is slender, the braincase is broad and rounded, the supraorbital and parietal ridges are poorly developed and the occiput is broad, incisive foramina is typically narrow and almost parallel sided.

Habitat. Undisturbed cloud forest and forest paramo ecotone at elevations of 1800-3100 m.

Food and Feeding. The Tawny-bellied Climbing Rat eats fruit, seeds, leaves and other plant parts, and insects. In Venezuela, a captive individual ate fruits of Besleria sp. (Gesneriaceae) and the palm Geonoma weberbauer: ( Arecaceae).

Breeding. Reproduction seems to occur year-round. In Venezuela, pregnant females (two embryos on average) or lactating were recorded between March andJune-August, and gestation lasted roughly one month. Sexual maturity is reached in three months.

Activity patterns. The Tawny-bellied Climbing Rat is nocturnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Tawny-bellied Climbing Rats use all levels of the forest, but they can spend most of their time in the forest canopy. They take refuge in hollows of trees, between leaves of palms, or in dense vegetation. Home range was 0-2 ha in forest 25 m in heigh.

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

Bibliography. Brito et al. (2017), Cassola (2016p), Handley (1976), Jiménez & Pacheco (2012), Lopez-Arévalo et al. (1993), Montenegro-Diaz et al. (1991), Osgood (1914a), Tribe (1996, 2015).