Daniel's tufted-tailed rat
{{Short description|Species of rodent}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Daniel's tufted-tailed rat
| status = LC
| status_system =IUCN3.1
| genus = Eliurus
| species = danieli
| authority = Carleton & Goodman, 2007
| synonyms =
| range_map = Eliurus danieli range map.svg
| range_map_caption = Eliurus danieli range
}}
Daniel's tufted-tailed rat (Eliurus danieli) {{cite book|last=Beolens|first=Bo|title=The Eponym Dictionary of Mammals|year=2009|publisher=JHU Press|isbn=9780801893049|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I-kSmWLc6vYC&pg=PA529|author2=Michael Watkins |author3=Michael Grayson |pages=98, 529}} is a species of rodent in the family Nesomyidae. It was discovered in 2003 in the Parc National de l’Isalo in south-central Madagascar.Carleton, M.D., and S.M. Goodman. 2007. A New Species of the Eliurus majori Complex (Rodentia: Muroidea: Nesomyidae) from South-central Madagascar, with Remarks on Emergent Species Groupings in the Genus Eliurus. American Museum Novitates 3547: 1–21. [http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/bitstream/2246/5834/1/N3547.pdf] It is named for Daniel Rakotondravony, professor of animal biology at the University of Antananarivo, Madagascar.
Daniel's tufted-tailed rat first became known in 1995, when a specimen was found to belong to the majori-penicillatus complex. Molecular data suggested that Major's tufted-tailed rat (Eliurus majori) was a close relative; study of two more animals found in 2002 indicated that the two are different species.
Description
The head-and-body length of Daniel's tufted-tailed rat is about {{convert|150|mm|in|0|abbr=on}} and the tail is a further {{convert|185|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}. The fine soft hairs on the dorsal (upper) surface of the body are about {{convert|10|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} long, and are grey, tipped with buff. The guard hairs are dark brown to black and slightly longer than the cover hairs. The general dorsal colour of the animal is a brownish grey, with a plain grey face, forehead and limbs. There is a sharp line separating the upper parts from the underparts. and the latter are buffish white. The feet are white and there is a tuft of white hairs at the base of each claw. The basal third of the tail is semi-naked, the central third is scantily clad with short black hairs, and the distal third has a tuft of bright white hairs which are up to {{convert|15|mm|in|1|abbr=on}} in length.
A male specimen found in December 2002 was found to have scrotal testes with convoluted epididymis. This species has a notably rounded braincase, certainly in comparison with the Tsingy tufted-tailed rat (Eliurus antsingy).{{cite journal|last=Goodman|first=Steven M.|author2=Martin Raheriarisena|author3=Sharon A. Jansa|title=A new species of Eliurus Milne Edwards, 1885 (Rodentia: Nesomyinae) from the Réserve Spéciale d'Ankarana, northern Madagascar|journal=Bonner zoologische Beiträge|year=2009|volume=56|issue=3|pages=133–49|url=http://www.zfmk.de/BZB/Band_56_3/BZB_56_2009_Goodman_et_all.pdf|access-date=28 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207011628/http://www.zfmk.de/BZB/Band_56_3/BZB_56_2009_Goodman_et_all.pdf|archive-date=7 February 2011}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Nesomyidae nav}}
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Category:Mammals described in 2007
Category:Taxa named by Michael D. Carleton
Category:Mammals of Madagascar