402.

Cleber’s Arboreal Rice Rat

Oecomys cleberi

French: Oecomys de Cleber / German: CleberBaumreisratte / Spanish: Rata arrocera arboricola de Cleber

Other common names: Cleber's Oecomys

Taxonomy. Oecomys cleberi Locks, 1981, “Fazenda Agua Limpa da Universidade de Brasilia, Distrito Federal, Brasil. Longtitude: 45°54’W. Latitude: 15°57’S.”

Taxonomy of O. cleberi is poorly known. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known from a few localities in C & S Brazil.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 83-117 mm, tail 80-123 mm, ear 10-15 mm, hindfoot 21-29 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Cleber’s Arboreal Rice Rat is small, externally similar to the White-bellied Arboreal Rice Rat ( O. bicolor), having pure white to pale cream underparts sharply contrasted to orange-brown upperparts and relatively short tail with modest terminal tuft. Dorsum is yellowish brown; flanks are lighter than dorsum, with bright yellow line at limits of ventral surface. Venter has pure white to light gray-based hair, but hairs on chin and throat are always white to roots. Larger mystacial vibrissas reaches 35 mm in length. Ears are short, ¢.14% of head-body length, and light brown on adults. Dorsal fur is short, ¢.5-5 mm in length. Tail is equal to head-body length, dark brown with small squared scales arranged in annulations and small tuft 3-4-5 mm long. Body hair extends 5-10 mm over proximal part oftail. Feet are small and narrow, ¢.21% of head-body length. Claws are curved, with white ungual tufts covering one-half of each claw. Fingers are mainly covered by pure white hair, but there some brown-based hairs next to metatarsals. Dorsum of feet and hands are uniformly cream.

Habitat. Riparian forests in Cerrado biome. In Serra do Facao, Goias State, a few Cleber’s Arboreal Rice Rats were caught in semideciduous forests (mesophytic seasonal forest), gallery forests along river banks, and riparian forests.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red Lust.

Bibliography. Carleton & Musser (2015), Costa et al. (2008), Flores (2010), Gomes et al. (2015), Gutiérrez & Marinho-Filho (2017), Locks (1981), Rocha et al. (2012).