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Vol. 50 No. 5, 2011
A Review of the Distribution, Morphometrics, and Habit of Owl’s Spiny Rat Carterodon sulcidens (Lund, 1841) (Rodentia: Echimyidae)
Alexandra M. R. Bezerra1,*, Jader Marinho-Filho1, and Ana Paula Carmignotto2
1Zoology Department, Universidade de Brasília, CEP 70910-900, Brasília, DF, Brazil
2Universidade Federal de São Carlos, Campus Sorocaba, CEP 18052-780, Sorocaba, SP, Brazil
Alexandra M. R. Bezerra, Jader Marinho-Filho, and Ana Paula Carmignotto (2011) The genus Carterodon Waterhouse, 1848 contains a single species, C. sulcidens (Lund, 1841), restricted to Neotropical savannas and known from a few sites in central Brazil, where it is endemic to the Cerrado biome.
Current knowledge about this rare species comes from a handful of
specimens deposited in scientific collections. The recent acquisition
of additional samples prompted an assessment of the morphological
variability in the species. Multivariate analyses of 25 craniodental
measurements obtained from 27 whole specimens pooled into 3 geographic
samples and representative of all available Carterodon specimens,
revealed no morphometric structuring. Two new records were obtained
from museum specimens. One extends the species’ distribution southward
to a new Brazilian state, but many Carterodon
localities have lost their natural habitats. While natural history
notes indicate no reproductive seasonality, more females than males
were captured in both the wet and dry seasons. The species is a habitat
specialist with a small litter size, a low reproductive rate, and a
high risk of extinction due to habitat loss.
Key words: Carterodon, Cerrado, Endemism, Morphometrics, Natural history.
*Correspondence: E-mail:abezerra@fst.com.br
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