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Red Andean Oldfield Mouse

Thomasomys auricularis

French: Thomasomys oreillard / German: Rote Paramomaus / Spanish: Raton de erial de los Andes rojos

Other common names: Red Andean Thomasomys

Taxonomy. Thomasomys auricularis Anthony, 1923, Taraguacocha, on trail from Zaruma to Zaraguro, Cordillera de Chilla, Provincia del Oro, Ecuador.

This species has been treated as synonym or subspecies of 1. pyrrhonotus . Monotypic.

Distribution. W Andes of SW Ecuador (Canar, Azuay, El Oro, and Loja provinces).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 138-155 mm, tail 162-190 mm, ear 21-24 mm, hindfoot 29-32 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Fur of the Red Andean Oldfield Mouse is dense and long, usually more than 10 mm in midline of back and toward tail. Pale brown ventral region usually has thin yellow central stripe on chest, throat, and cheeks. It has slight bright ocher spot behind ears. Hairs on back and belly are bicolored, always with bases from gray to dark gray. Head is similar in color to back. Hindfeet are moderately long and broad, with silvery brown or blackish hair on upper surface and with black soles; small tufts of longer hairs, whitish or silver, are usually present on claws. Tail is unicolored or bicolored,thick, and long; it reaches c.120% of head-body length, lacks pencil that characterizes other species of Thomasomys, 1s naked in appearance and finely scaly, and covered with small short fine hair. One Red Andean Oldfield Mouse has been reported with leucism (patchy coloration).

Habitat. Montane forest and paramo, degraded quenoa Polylepis (Rosaceae) forests with open canopies and abundant shrub vegetation, and altered montane forest at elevations of 2330-4000 m. Type specimen of the Red Andean Oldfield Mouse was captured on bank of a small mountain stream in thick forest growth. Individuals were also recorded near of roots of Polylepis trees.

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 [UCN Red List as a distinct species. [UCN treated this species under the Reddish-backed Oldfield Mouse (71. pyrrhonotus), classified as Vulnerable. Also considered vulnerable in the Red book of the mammals of the Ecuador. Natural habitat of the Cordillera de Chilla has been strongly fragmented in recent decades. Forests and moors have been replaced by pastures and large extensions of pine plantations, leaving only small remnants isolated on edges of ravines and rocky walls.

Bibliography. Anthony (1923), Barnett (1999), Brito & Garcia (2016), Brito & Valdivieso-Bermeo (2016), Moreno et al. (2011), Musser & Carleton (1993, 2005), Pacheco (2003, 2015b), Tirira (2007).