Highland Small Rice Rat

Highland Small Rice RatThe highland small rice rat is a small rodent recorded in Andean páramo. An Ecuadorian study found lineage differences between northern and southern samples and noted that the northern group may be a separate species.What does it look like?Southern M. altissimus sensu stricto specimens had dorsal hairs with gray bases, yellow-brown middle bands, and black tips; belly hairs had gray bases and cream tips. The northern sample may represent another lineage.How does it live?The highland small rice rat is a small rodent recorded in Andean páramo. An Ecuadorian study found lineage differences between northern and southern samples and noted that the northern group may be a separate species.In Ecuador, the study recorded refuges in shrubs, soil cavities, fallen logs, and rock walls, and found animals in páramo grassland and around Polylepis forest.Keeping it safeAn extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.