Canariomys
- 1 min read
- 2 chapters
Related on Lably
Through Extinction and Holocene
Original distribution
It is generally believed that the species of Tenerife lived in a wooded area linked to the laurisilva and that it had climbing abilities, whereas the species of Gran Canaria lived in more open environments and was more linked to the excavation of burrows.
Sign in to keep reading
One more chapter is free with a Lably account.
Phylogeny
Two species are currently recognized, the Tenerife giant rat, (Canariomys bravoi), and the Gran Canaria giant rat (Canariomys tamarani). Both species lived in between the Pleistocene and Holocene epochs.
Both species became extinct around the beginning of the 1st Millennium, shortly after the first human settlement of the islands by the Guanches.
Genetic evidence indicates that the genus is nested within Arvicanthis, specifically within the African grass rat (A. niloticus) species complex, with an estimated divergence from its mainland relatives around 650,000 years ago.