554.

Colombian Grass Mouse

Akodon affinis

French: Akodon de Colombie / German: Kolumbien-Graslandmaus / Spanish: Ratén campestre de Colombia

Other common names: Colombian Akodont, Cordillera Occidental Akodont

Taxonomy. Microxus affinis J. A. Allen, 1912, “San Antonio (near Cali, alt. 8000 ft [= 2438 m]), Cauca, Colombia.”

Akodon tolimae, with type locality in Rio Toché, Quindio Andes, Tolima, Colombia, is currently subsumed under A. affinis, a proposition that needs an explicit exploration. Monotypic.

Distribution. W Andes Range of W Colombia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 94 mm,tail 65 mm, ear 14 mm, hindfoot 21 mm (mean values from museum specimens). No specific data are available for body weight. The Colombian Grass Mouse is a small species of Akodon, with uniform dusky brown upperparts, with tips of hairs yellowish giving general olivaceous effect; venter is dark grayish brown, with tips of hairs olivaceous giving a general dark grayish brown with faint olive tinge; ears are dull brown, nearly naked, rather short, and broad; feet are grayish brown, with hairs dark and lightertips; and tail is brown, not appreciably bicolored, nearly naked, and shorter than headbody length. Chromosomal complement is 2n = 24, FN = 40.

Habitat. Primary cloud forests and adjacent human-modified vegetation in relatively cool and very humid environments. In Santander, the Colombian Grass Mouse was trapped in submontane forest at elevations of 1800-2800 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The Colombian Grass Mouse is terrestrial, mostly diurnal, and crepuscular.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Allen, J.A. (1912, 1913a), Montanez (2009), Pardinas, Teta, Alvarado-Serrano et al. (2015), Quiceno (1993), Roach (2016a), Voss et al. (2002).