743.

Anita’s Leaf-eared Mouse

Phyllotis anitae

French: Phyllotis d’Anita / German: Anita-Blattohrmaus / Spanish: Raton orejudo de Anita

Taxonomy. Phyllotis anitae Jayat et al., 2007, 10 km by road south of Hualinchay on the trail to Lara, Tucuman, Argentina.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. Known only from the type locality in NW Argentina .

Descriptive notes. Head-body 82-123 mm, tail 94-124 mm, ear 18-21 mm, hindfoot 27-31 mm; weight 20-5-50 g. Dorsal hairs of Anita’s Leaf-eared Mouse are mostly dark gray to black, with ocheroustips, and ¢.9 mm long. Sides and venter gradually blend to ocherous gray, without sharp contrast between dorsal and ventral areas. Ventral hairs are basally gray and distally ocherous. Ears are moderate in size, internally and externally covered by dark brownish to almost black hair. Mystacial vibrissae are abundant, some white and short and others black and long, extending beyond posterior margins of pinnae. Submental vibrissae are short and completely white. Manus and pes are generally dark and covered by dense and short hair. Digits and distal dorsum of manus show only white hair, contrasting with darker proximal carpus. Dorsal pes is uniformly drab. Soles of manus and pes are naked. Tail is slightly bicolored and moderately hairless, with ventral surface paler and more hairy than dorsal surface. There are four pairs of mammae.

Habitat. Ecotone between montane forest and high-elevation grasslands in upper elevational limit of Yungas, characterized by alder forests ( Alnus acuminata, Betulaceae) and grassland communities dominated by Festuca hieronymi, Deyeuxia polygama, and Stipa eriostachya (all Poaceae) at elevations of 1700-2800 m. Anita’s Leaf-eared Mice were trapped near isolated large rocks where soil was covered by abundantleaf litter.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. Holotype of Anita’s Leaf-eared Mouse was a lactating female captured in late April.

Activity patterns. Anita’s Leaf-eared Mouse is mainly nocturnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. Anita’s Leaf-eared Mouse seems to be rare and specialized in high-elevation alder forests.

Bibliography. Jayat & Pardinas (2008b), Jayat, D'Elia et al. (2007), Steppan & Ramirez (2015).