Spalax istricus, Mehely, 1909

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr, 2017, Spalacidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 7 Rodents II, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 108-142 : 137

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6609100

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6608876

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03AE87DD-FF94-BD18-FAE8-FB4BF899F4C4

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Spalax istricus
status

 

18. View Plate 5: Spalacidae

Oltenia Blind Mole-rat

Spalax istricus View in CoL

French: Spalax d'Olténie / German: Oltenien-Blindmaus / Spanish: Rata topo ciega de Oltenia

Taxonomy. Spalax istricus Méhely, 1909 View in CoL ,

Barza , Olt County, Romania.

L. Méhely in 1909 designated three syntypes from three different localities. G. S. Miller in 1912 restricted the type locality to Barza, and G. Csorba and A. Demeter in 1991 designated the specimen from Barza as the lectotype. Spalax istricus View in CoL isa member of the S. graecus View in CoL species group, which is characterized by elongated nasal bones and higher position ofsella externa of the mandible relative to sella interna. Spalax istricus View in CoL was traditionally united with S. graecus View in CoL and S. antiquus into a single species, S. graecus View in CoL . Spalax istricus View in CoL was usually treated as a synonym of S. graecus View in CoL or united with S. antiquus as a distinct subspecies, S. g. istricus View in CoL . In an analysis of mtDNA, A. Németh and colleagues in 2013 demonstrated that S. graecus View in CoL and S. antiquus exhibit considerable genetic divergence that was comparable to species-level differences among other species of Spalax. They also demonstrated clear morphological differences among S. graecus View in CoL , S. antiqguus, and S. istricus View in CoL that led to their conclusion that these represent three distinct species. Monotypic.

Distribution. S Romania. View Figure

Descriptive notes. Head-body c.242 mm, no visible external tail. No specific data are available for body weight. Color of the Oltenia Blind Mole-rat is variable; in the original description, it was referred to as reddish brown above and rust-colored below. According to Németh and colleagues in 2013, the Oltenia Blind Mole-rat differs from the other members of the S. graecus group in having a rostrum that is narrowed above but wider ventrally.

Habitat. Steppes,fields, and orchards of Oltenia and Muntenia, Romania.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Near Threatened on The IUCN Red List (under S. graecus ). Additional careful assessment of the Oltenia Blind Mole-rat separate from the Bukovina Blind Mole-rat ( S. graecus ) and Mehely’s Blind Mole-rat (S. antiquus) is needed. The Oltenia Blind Mole-rat has not been recorded in 30 years and appears to be extremely rare or extinct.

Bibliography. Chisamera et al. (2014), Csorba & Demeter (1991), Hadid et al. (2012), Krystufek (1999a), Méhely (1909), Miller (1912a), Murariu & Torcea (1984), Musser & Carleton (2005), Németh et al. (2013), Topachevskii (1969), Zagorodnyuk & Coroiu (2008).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Rodentia

Family

Spalacidae

Genus

Spalax

Loc

Spalax istricus

Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier & Thomas E. Lacher, Jr 2017
2017
Loc

Spalax istricus Méhely, 1909

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

Spalax istricus

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

Spalax istricus

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

Spalax istricus

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

istricus

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

istricus

Mehely 1909
1909
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
Loc

S. graecus

Nehring 1898
1898
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