Unlocking Andean sigmodontine diversity: five new species of Chilomys (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the montane forests of Ecuador.

ABSTRACT: The Andean cloud forests of Ecuador are home to several endemic mammals. Members of the Thomasomyini rodents are well represented in the Andes, with Thomasomys being the largest genus (47 species) of the subfamily Sigmodontinae. Within this tribe, however, there are genera that have escaped a taxonomic revision, and Chilomys Thomas, 1897, constitutes a paradigmatic example of these "forgotten" Andean cricetids. Described more than a century ago, current knowledge of this externally unmistakable montane rodent is very limited, and doubts persist as to whether or not it is monotypic. After several years of field efforts in Ecuador, a considerable quantity of specimens of Chilomys were collected from various localities representing both Andean chains. Based on an extensiv

SUBMITTER: Brito J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9029390 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature