Rheomys

The Central American water mice ( Rheomys ) are a living in Central America rodent genus from the group of rats fish within the New world. They include four types.

The Central American water mice are perfectly adapted to an aquatic lifestyle, thanks to its streamlined body and her little ears. The eyes are small, the nostrils closed. The hind feet are enlarged and the toes webbed, the tail is flattened. These animals can reach a body length 9-14 cm, the tail is 9-17 inches long. Their coat is short and dense, it is dark brown in color at the top, the underside is whitish.

These animals live in Central America, its range extends from southern Mexico to Panama. Their habitat is tropical forests, where they are located on the banks of rivers.

You go in the water in search of food and feed on fish, aquatic insects, snails and other small animals.

Four types can be distinguished:

• Rheomys mexicanus is known only from the Mexican state of Oaxaca.
• Rheomys raptor inhabited Costa Rica and Panama.
• Rheomys thomasi is distributed from southern Mexico to El Salvador.
• Rheomys underwoodi occurs in Costa Rica and western Panama.

All four species have a small distribution area and are threatened by the destruction of their habitat. The IUCN lists only R. mexicanus threat as low, the information is deprecated.