ADW: Ctenomys haigi: Information

2009/11/22 02:23:15.839 US/Eastern

By Deborah Ciszek

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Rodentia

Suborder: Hystricomorpha

Family: Ctenomyidae

Genus: Ctenomys

Species: Ctenomys haigi

Geographic Range

This species of tuco-tuco is found only in southwestern Argentina.

Biogeographic Regions:
neotropical (native ).

Habitat

These tuco-tucos live in open, treeless areas in the foothills of the Andes.

Terrestrial Biomes:
savanna or grassland .

Physical Description

Mass

The average weight is 164 g, the head and body length ranges from 155 to 165 mm, and the tail is about 70 mm long. This species is fairly small compared to other tuco-tucos. Its fur is soft and silky, and agouti gray brown in color.

Some key physical features:
endothermic ; bilateral symmetry .

Reproduction

Number of offspring
2 to 4

The litter size ranges from 2 to 4.

Key reproductive features:
gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual .

Behavior

This animal lives in burrows and comes above ground only briefly. It does not burrow as extensively as many other species in the genus. These tuco-tucos make a short "tuc-tuc" vocalization that is repeated every second as many as 30 times in a row. They vocalize at night as well as during the day.

Key behaviors:
motile .

Food Habits

The ecology of this species has not been extensively studied, but if it is similar to other tuco-tucos it eats a variety of roots and grasses.

Primary Diet:
herbivore (folivore , eats sap or other plant foods).

Plant Foods:
roots and tubers.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List: [link]:
Lower Risk - Least Concern.

CITES: [link]:
No special status.

We have no text on this topic for this species. Look to the sidebar on the right for some limited information.

For More Information

Find Ctenomys haigi information at

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Deborah Ciszek (author), University of Michigan.

References

Redford, K.H. and J.F. Eisenberg. 1992. Mammals of the Neotropics, Vol. 2, pp. 370-371. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

2009/11/22 02:23:16.516 US/Eastern

To cite this page: Ciszek, D. 1999. "Ctenomys haigi" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed November 26, 2009 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Ctenomys_haigi.html.

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This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants DUE-0633095 and DRL-0628151.
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Ctenomys haigiHaig's tuco-tuco