630.

Principal Oldfield Mouse

Thomasomys princeps

French: Thomasomys cardinal / German: Kordilleren-Paramomaus / Spanish: Raton de erial principal

Other common names: Principal Thomasomys

Taxonomy. Oryzomys princeps Thomas, 1895, Bogota Region, Cundinamarca, Colombia.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. E Andes Range in C Colombia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 173-198 mm, tail 211-249 mm, ear 24-25 mm, hindfoot 35-39 mm; weight 121 g. A moderately large Thomasomys slightly larger than the Ecuadorean Golden Oldfield Mouse (71. aureus). Dorsal pelage long, thick, and not very fluffy, rich orange rufous in color with faint dark band along midline, richer along sides; undersurface clear orange buff, not counter shaded. Mystacial vibrissae long, extending distinctly posterior to pinnae. Hindfeet relatively long broad, with dark brown patch on metatarsals and silvery whitish on sides and digits. Tail long (113-131% of head-body length), unicolored blackish brown, finely annulated, covered with short hairs, and without terminal pencil. Hallux long. Protuberant anus prominent.

Habitat. Montane forests at elevations from 2650 m to 3400 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 IUCN Red List as a distinct species. IUCN still considers the Principal Oldfield Mouse a subspecies of the Golden Oldfield Mouse, which is classified as Least Concern.

Bibliography. Calderon-Capote et al. (2016), Lee, Boada et al. (2011), Lee, Ritchie et al. (2015), Lopez-Arévalo et al. (1993), Pacheco (2003, 2015b).