400.

Angolan Vlei Rat

Otomys anchietae

French: Otomys d’Anchieta / German: Angola-Lamellenzahnratte / Spanish: Rata de laguna de Angola

Other common names: Anchieta’s Vlei Rat

Taxonomy. Euryotis anchietae Bocage, 1882,

Caconda, Huila, Angola.

Otomys anchietae 1s distinguished from all other species of Otfomys by its larger size. Other species with five or more laminae in M, (O. barbouri, O. lacustris, and O. occidentalis) were previously included in O. anchietae but have been shown to be distinct. Monotypic.

Distribution. Angola, associated with Congo and Okavango river basins and recorded from source of Cuito River draining into Okavango in 2016.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 197-217 mm, tail 87-127 mm, hindfoot 36-41 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The Angolan Vlei Rat is large and robust, with large blunt head, short tail, and shaggy fur. Dorsum is blackish, tinged with pinkish buff above and near-cinnamon below. Tail is short (¢.56% of head—body length), darker above than below and sparsely haired. Females have two pairs of nipples. Upper incisors have one deep and one shallow groove, and lower incisors have single groove. M, has 5-6 laminae, and M’ has 6-8 laminae.

Habitat. Mesic savannas at elevations below 2000 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. Lactating Angolan Vlei Rats were collected in August.

Activity patterns. The Angolan Vlei Rat is terrestrial and mainly diurnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

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

Bibliography. Crawford-Cabral (1998), Dieterlen & Van der Straeten (1992), Happold (2013a), Hill & Carter (1941), Monadjem et al. (2015), Taylor & Kumirai (2001), Taylor, Denys & Mukerjee (2004), Taylor, Maree et al. (2014).