Santamartamys
The redhead Tree Rat ( Santamartamys rufodorsalis, Syn: Isothrix rufodorsalis, Diplomys rufodorsalis ) is a rodent of the family of sting rats ( Echimyidae ). The species had not been detected in the wild since 1898 and was rediscovered in 2011.
Features
By 2011, only two individuals were known, one of which was measured. This adult male had a total length of 45.7 cm, 26.7 cm accounted for more than body long and powerful tail. The ear length was 12 mm, which is very short and broad hind feet had a length of 35 mm. The facial skeleton is very short. The eyes are probably strikingly large in adaptation to the nocturnal lifestyle. The fur is very soft, thick and long.
The species is colored very striking. On the top of the animals are intensely red-brown, the flanks and the sides of the head are lighter yellowish brown and the underside is gray. On top of the head and neck, some hairs are with black tips. The small ears are hairless outside, on the inside, the ear cups on numerous long hair. The tail is hairy, the proximal three-fifths are black, the rest of the tail is dropped sharply white.
System
As part of a revision of the arboreal species of sting rats, the species was placed in a separate genus Santamartamys in 2005.
Distribution, numbers and hazard
The holotype of the species was collected in 1898 in the isolated mountain range of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northeastern Colombia, another not exactly datable copy before 1913 in the same area. On May 4, 2011, a copy of the El Dorado Nature Reserve was again detected in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta to 113 years. The type could be identified from photos. The previous proofs were made in moist forests of the tropical upper to lower montane zone. The redhead tree rat is provisionally classified as threatened by the IUCN due to the probably very small holdings, the very small distribution area and probably very strong habitat fragmentation extinction ( " critically endangered "). For a reliable assessment of the risk information would be needed about the extent to which species can survive in degraded or disturbed by felling forests.