From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Genus of rodents
Zapus
is a
genus
of North American
jumping mouse
. It is the only genus whose members have the
dental formula
1.0.1.3
1.0.0.3
.
Zapus
are the only extant mammals aside from the
Aye-aye
with a total of 18 teeth.
[1]
This genus was first separated from
Old World
jerboas
by Coues in 1875. Members of this genus are very similar in appearance, all species having long tails, long hind feet and yellowish-brown
pelage
above and white below, the colors distinctly separated by a yellowish-orange lateral line.
Taxonomy
[
edit
]
The genus contains eight extant
species
. At least some of these subspecies designations are thought to be tenuous:
[2]
[3]
The
Okanogan Valley jumping mouse
(
Zapus okanoganensis
), which is restricted to the
Okanogan Valley
and the eastern slopes of the
Cascade Range
, was described in 2017.
[3]
Although it is definitely thought to be a distinct species, it has not yet been properly published and is thus considered a
nomen nudum
, and is tentatively classified in
Z. saltator
until that happens.
[2]
A number of fossil species are also known, with the oldest being
Zapus rinkeri
from the
Blancan
of
Kansas
.
[4]
In popular culture
[
edit
]
The Linux distribution
Ubuntu
named its version 17.04 after the small creature, giving it the codename
Zesty Zapus
.
[5]
References
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Zapus
.
- ^
Schwartz, C. W., E. R. Schwartz. 2001.
The wild mammals of Missouri
. University of Missouri Press, Columbia, Missouri, USA. pp. 262?267
- ^
a
b
Database, Mammal Diversity (2021-08-10),
Mammal Diversity Database
, retrieved
21 May
2022
- ^
a
b
Malaney, Jason L.; Demboski, John R.; Cook, Joseph A. (2017-09-01).
"Integrative species delimitation of the widespread North American jumping mice (Zapodinae)"
.
Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution
.
114
: 137?152.
doi
:
10.1016/j.ympev.2017.06.001
.
ISSN
1055-7903
.
PMID
28600183
.
- ^
Hart, E.B.; et al. (2004).
"
Zapus princeps
"
.
Mammalian Species
.
749
: Number 749: pp. 1?7.
doi
:
10.1644/749
.
S2CID
19553066
.
- ^
Shuttleworth, Mark.
"The mouse that jumped"
.
Mark Shuttleworth
. Retrieved
11 January
2021
.
- Allen, J. A. 1900. The North-American Jumping Mice. The American Naturalist, 34:399, pp. 199?202.