227.

Costa Rican Harvest Mouse

Reithrodontomys cherrii

French: Souris-moissonneuse de Cherrie / German: Costa-Rica-Erntemaus / Spanish: Ratén espiguero de Costa Rica

Taxonomy. Heperomys (Vesperimus) cherrii J. A. Allen, 1891, San José, Costa Rica.

Reithrodontomys cherrii was considered a subspecies of R. mexicanus and elevated to species status in 2005. Reithrodontomys cherrii is in subgenus Aporodon. Monotypic.

Distribution. C Costa Rica.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 67-85 mm, tail 101-117 mm, ear 14-18 mm, hindfoot 17-20 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The Costa Rican Harvest Mouse is one of the largest and most brilliantly colored species of Reithrodontomys . Dorsum and sides are bright orange (zinc orange or ocherous orange). Braincase is deep and strongly convex, and toothrow is long. Compared with the Short-nosed Harvest Mouse ( R. brevirostris), the Costa Rican Harvest Mouse has a relatively short tail.

Habitat. Montane regions of central Costa Rica, including Cordillera Central and Cordillera de Talamanca, at elevations of 913-2134 m.

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. Given relatively restricted distribution and lack of biological knowledge, the Costa Rican Harvest Mouse should be carefully monitored.

Bibliography. Allen (1891a), Arellano et al. (2005), Gardner & Carleton (2009), Hooper (1952a).