Amblysomus hottentotus (A. Smith 1829)

[Chrysochloris] hottentotus A. Smith 1829, Zool. J., 4: 436.

Type Locality: "Interior parts of South Africa ", Grahamstown, Eastern Cape Prov., South Africa.

Vernacular Names: Hottentot Golden Mole.

Subspecies::

Subspecies Amblysomus hottentotus subsp. hottentotus A. Smith 1829

Subspecies Amblysomus hottentotus subsp. iris Thomas and Schwann 1905

Subspecies Amblysomus hottentotus subsp. longiceps Broom 1907

Subspecies Amblysomus hottentotus subsp. pondoliae Thomas and Schwann 1905

Subspecies Amblysomus hottentotus subsp. meesteri Bronner 2000

Distribution: Eastern Cape Prov., KwaZulu-Natal, NE Free State and Mpumalanga (South Africa); Lesotho; possibly Swaziland.

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc) for A. hottentotus and A. iris .

Discussion: Bronner (1995 b, 1996, 2000) demonstrated the existence of three cryptic species ( marleyi, septentrionalis and robustus) in this species, as traditionally constituted (Meester 1974).