The Old World rats and mice, part of the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Murinae in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Muridae The Muridae, or murids, are either the largest or second-largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 870 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. ...

, comprise at least 519 species. Members of this subfamily are called murines. In terms of species richness, this subfamily is larger than all

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

families except the

Cricetidae The Cricetidae are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes true hamsters, voles, lemmings, muskrats, and New World rats and mice. At over 870 species, it is either the largest or second-largest family ...

and

, and is larger than all

orders except the bats and the remainder of the

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

Description

The Murinae are native to

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. They are terrestrial

placental Placental mammals (infraclass Placentalia ) are one of the three extant subdivisions of the class Mammalia, the other two being Monotremata and Marsupialia. Placentalia contains the vast majority of extant mammals, which are partly distinguished ...

s. They have also been introduced to all continents except

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

, and are serious pest animals. This is particularly true in island communities where they have contributed to the endangerment and

extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

ion of many native animals. Two prominent murine species have become vital laboratory animals: the

brown rat The brown rat (''Rattus norvegicus''), also known as the common rat, street rat, sewer rat, wharf rat, Hanover rat, Norway rat and Norwegian rat, is a widespread species of common rat. One of the largest Muroidea, muroids, it is a brown or grey ...

and

house mouse The house mouse (''Mus musculus'') is a small mammal of the rodent family Muridae, characteristically having a pointed snout, large rounded ears, and a long and almost hairless tail. It is one of the most abundant species of the genus '' Mus''. A ...

are both used as medical subjects. The murines have a distinctive molar pattern that involves three rows of cusps instead of two, the primitive pattern seen most frequently in muroid rodents.

Fossils

The first known appearance of the Murinae in the

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

record is about 14 million years ago with the fossil genus '' Antemus''. ''Antemus'' is thought to derive directly from '' Potwarmus'', which has a more primitive tooth pattern. Likewise, two genera, '' Progonomys'' and '' Karnimata'', are thought to derive directly from ''Antemus''. ''Progonomys'' is thought to be the ancestor of '' Mus'' and relatives, while ''Karnimata'' was previously thought to lead to ''

Rattus ''Rattus'' is a genus of muroid rodents, all typically called rats. However, the term rat can also be applied to rodent species outside of this genus. Species and description The best-known ''Rattus'' species are the black rat (''R. rattus'') ...

'' and relatives, although it is now thought to be a member of the extant tribe Praomyini. All of these fossils are found in the well-preserved and easily dated Siwalik fossil beds of

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. The transition from ''Potwarmus'' to ''Antemus'' to ''Progonomys'' and ''Karnimata'' is considered an excellent example of anagenic evolution.

Taxonomy

Most of the Murinae have been poorly studied. Some genera have been grouped, such as the hydromyine water rats, conilurine or pseudomyine Australian mice, or the phloeomyine

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

n forms. It appears as if genera from Southeast Asian islands and Australia may be early offshoots compared to mainland forms. The vlei rats in the genera '' Otomys'' and '' Parotomys'' are often placed in a separate subfamily, Otomyinae, but have been shown to be closely related to African murines in spite of their uniqueness. Three genera, '' Uranomys'', '' Lophuromys'', and '' Acomys'', were once considered to be murines, but were found to be more closely related to gerbils through

molecular phylogenetics Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

. They have been assigned a new subfamily status, Deomyinae. Molecular phylogenetic studies of Murinae include Lecompte, et al. (2008), which analyzes African murine species based on the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and two nuclear gene fragments. Lecompte, et al. (2008) estimates that African murines colonized Africa from Asia approximately 11 million years ago during the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

. The following

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or Taxon, taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, M ...

of 16 Murinae

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

, based on

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

analysis of the Interphotoreceptor Retinoid Binding Protein (IRBP) gene, is from Jansa & Weksler (2004: 264).

Distribution

The following is a list of Murinae genus divisions ordered by the continents that they are endemic to. Most of the diversity is located in

and

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

. *

**Aethomys division – 1 genus **Arvicanthis division – 6 genera **Colomys division – 3 genera **Dasymys division – 8 genera **Hybomys division – 3 genera **Malacomys division – 1 genus **Oenomys division – 5 genea ** Otomyini division/tribe – 3 genera *

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

**Apodemus division – 2 genera **Micromys division – 6 genera **Genus '' Mus'' *

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

**Golunda division – 1 genus **Millardia division – 4 genera *

**Dacnomys division – 8 genera **Hadromys division – 1 genus **Maxomys division – 1 genus **Pithecheir division – 6 genera **Rattus division – 21 genera *

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

**Chrotomys division – 5 genera **Crunomys division – 2 genera **Phloeomys division – 4 genera **Genus '' Musseromys'' *

Sulawesi Sulawesi ( ), also known as Celebes ( ), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the List of islands by area, world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Min ...

**Crunomys division – 2 genera **Echiothrix division – 1 genus **Melasmothrix division – 2 genera *

Moluccas The Maluku Islands ( ; , ) or the Moluccas ( ; ) are an archipelago in the eastern part of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located in West Melanesi ...

**Halmaheramys division – 1 genus *

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

**Hydromys division – 6 genera **Lorentzimys division – 1 genus **Pogonomys division – 11 genera **Uromys division – 5 genera **Xeromys division – 3 genera **Genus '' Mirzamys'' *

**Pseudomys division – 8 genera

List of species

As of 2005, the Murinae contained 129 genera in 584 species. Musser and Carleton (2005) divided the Murinae into 29 genus divisions. They treated the Otomyinae as a separate subfamily, but all molecular analyses conducted to date have supported their inclusion in the Murinae as relatives of African genera. In a recent expedition in the Philippines, seven more '' Apomys'' mice were added and the genus was proposed to split into two subgenera - ''Apomys'' and ''Megapomys'', based on morphological and cytochrome b DNA sequences. In 2021, a major revision was taken of Praomyini. The

tribes The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

are based on the classification by the American Society of Mammalogists. Some of the division placement is based on Pages ''et al''., 2015 and Rowe ''et al''., 2019. SUBFAMILY MURINAE - Old World rats and mice *Tribe Apodemini **Genus ''

Apodemus ''Apodemus'' is a genus of Muridae, murid (true mice and rats) containing the field mice as well as other well-known species like the wood mouse and the yellow-necked mouse. The name is unrelated to that of the ''Mus (genus), Mus'' genus, instead ...

'' - Old World field mice **Genus '' Rhagamys'' † **Genus '' Tokudaia'' - Ryūkyū spiny rats *Tribe Arvicanthini **'' Aethomys'' division ***Genus '' Aethomys'' - bush rats ***Genus '' Micaelamys'' **''

Arvicanthis ''Arvicanthis'' is a genus of rodent from Africa. They are commonly referred to as unstriped grass mice, unstriped grass rats, and kusu rats. Species Genus ''Arvicanthis'' - unstriped grass mice *Abyssinian grass rat, ''Arvicanthis abyssinicus' ...

'' division ***Genus ''

'' - unstriped grass mice ***Genus '' Desmomys'' ***Genus '' Lemniscomys'' - striped grass mice ***Genus '' Mylomys'' (African Groove-toothed Rat) ***Genus '' Pelomys'' - groove-toothed creek rats ***Genus '' Rhabdomys'' (Four-striped Grass Mouse) **'' Dasymys'' division ***Genus '' Dasymys'' - shaggy swamp rats **'' Golunda'' division ***Genus '' Golunda'' (Indian bush rat) **'' Hybomys'' division ***Genus '' Dephomys'' - defua rats ***Genus '' Hybomys'' - hump-nosed mice ***Genus '' Stochomys'' (target rat) ***Genus '' Typomys'' **'' Oenomys'' division ***Genus †'' Canariomys'' - Canary Islands giant rats ***Genus '' Grammomys'' ***Genus '' Lamottemys'' ***Genus †'' Malpaisomys'' ***Genus '' Oenomys'' - rufous-nosed rats ***Genus '' Thallomys'' - acacia rats ***Genus '' Thamnomys'' - thicket rats *Tribe Hapalomyini **Genus '' Hapalomys'' - marmoset rats *Tribe Hydromyini **''

Chiropodomys ''Chiropodomys'' (or pencil-tailed tree mice) is a genus of Old World rats and mice native to Southeast Asia and northeast India. They are tree-dwelling, very small mice, mostly found in tropical rainforest. In total six extant species have been ...

'' division (alternately considered a distinct tribe, Chiropodomyini) ***Genus ''

'' - pencil-tailed tree mice **'' Chrotomys'' division ***Genus '' Apomys'' ***Genus '' Archboldomys'' (Mount Isarog shrew rats) ***Genus '' Chrotomys'' - Luzon striped rats ***Genus '' Soricomys'' ***Genus '' Rhynchomys'' - shrew-like rats **'' Conilurus'' division ***Genus '' Conilurus'' - rabbit rats ***Genus '' Leporillus'' - Australian stick-nest rats ***Genus '' Mesembriomys'' - tree rats **'' Haeromys'' division ***Genus '' Haeromys'' - pygmy tree mice **'' Hydromys'' division ***Genus '' Baiyankamys'' (formerly in ''Hydromys'') ***Genus '' Crossomys'' (earless water rat) ***Genus '' Hydromys'' - water rats ***Genus '' Leptomys'' ***Genus '' Microhydromys'' ***Genus '' Mirzamys'' ***Genus '' Parahydromys'' ***Genus '' Paraleptomys'' ***Genus '' Pseudohydromys'' - New Guinea false water rats ***Genus '' Xeromys'' (false water rat) **''

Mallomys ''Mallomys'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae. The name of the genus is formed from the Greek language, Greek μαλλός, ''mallos'', wool, and μῦς, ''mus'', mouse/rat. These very large rats weigh between and are native to highl ...

'' division ***Genus '' Abeomelomys'' ***Genus ''

'' - giant tree rats ***Genus '' Mammelomys'' ***Genus '' Pogonomelomys'' - Rummler's mosaic tailed rats ***Genus '' Xenuromys'' (white-tailed New Guinea rat) **'' Pogonomys'' division ***Genus '' Anisomys'' (powerful-toothed rat) ***Genus '' Chiruromys'' ***Genus '' Hyomys'' - white-eared rats ***Genus '' Lorentzimys'' (New Guinea jumping mouse) ***Genus '' Macruromys'' - New Guinean rats ***Genus '' Pogonomys'' - prehensile-tailed rats **'' Pseudomys'' division ***Genus '' Leggadina'' ***Genus '' Mastacomys'' ***Genus '' Notomys'' - Australian

hopping mice A hopping mouse is any of about ten different Australian native mice in the genus ''Notomys''. They are rodents, not marsupials, and their ancestors are thought to have arrived from Asia about 5 million years ago. All are brown or fawn, fading t ...

***Genus '' Pseudomys'' - Australian native mice ***Genus '' Zyzomys'' - thick-tailed rats **'' Uromys'' division ***Genus '' Melomys'' - banana rats ***Genus '' Paramelomys'' ***Genus '' Protochromys'' ***Genus '' Solomys'' - naked-tailed rats ***Genus '' Uromys'' - giant naked-tailed rats **Unknown division ***Genus '' Brassomys'' ***Genus '' Coccymys'' *Tribe Malacomyini **Genus '' Malacomys'' - big-eared swamp rats *Tribe Millardini **'' Millardia'' division ***Genus '' Cremnomys'' ***Genus '' Diomys'' (Manipur mouse) ***Genus '' Madromys'' ***Genus '' Millardia'' - Asian soft-furred rats **'' Pithecheir'' division ***Genus '' Pithecheir'' - monkey-footed rats ***Genus '' Pithecheirops'' *Tribe Murini **Genus '' Mus'' - true mice *Tribe Otomyini **Genus '' Myotomys'' - African karoo rats (now classified in ''Otomys'') **Genus '' Otomys'' - groove-toothed or vlei rats **Genus '' Parotomys'' - whistling rats *Tribe Phloeomyini **Genus '' Batomys'' - Luzon and Mindanao forest rats **Genus '' Carpomys'' - Luzon rats **Genus '' Crateromys'' - cloudrunners **Genus '' Musseromys'' - tree mice **Genus '' Phloeomys'' - slender-tailed cloud rats *Tribe Praomyini **Genus '' Chingawaemys'' - Chingawa forest rat **Genus '' Colomys'' (African wading rat) **Genus '' Congomys'' **Genus '' Heimyscus'' **Genus ''

Hylomyscus ''Hylomyscus'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae endemic to Africa. It contains 21 species divided into six species groups: *''H. aeta'' group **Beaded wood mouse, ''Hylomyscus aeta'' **Mount Oku wood mouse, ''Hylomyscus grandis'' *'' ...

'' - African wood mice **Genus '' Mastomys'' - multimammate mice **Genus '' Montemys'' **Genus ''

Myomyscus Verreaux's mouse or Verreaux's white-footed rat (''Myomyscus verreauxii'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is the only species in the genus ''Myomyscus''. Other species that had been previously assigned to ''Myomyscus'' are now c ...

'' **Genus '' Nilopegamys'' **Genus ''

Ochromyscus ''Ochromyscus'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae. It contains three species from Sub-Saharan Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, both of which were formerly classified in '' Myomyscus'': * Brockman's rock mouse Brockman's rock mouse, ...

'' - rock mice **Genus '' Praomys'' - African soft-furred rats **Genus '' Serengetimys'' **Genus '' Stenocephalemys'' - Ethiopian narrow-headed rats **Genus '' Zelotomys'' - stink mice *Tribe Rattini **'' Berylmys'' division ***Genus '' Berylmys'' - white-toothed rats **'' Bunomys'' division ***Genus '' Bullimus'' ***Genus '' Bunomys'' ***Genus '' Eropeplus'' (Sulawesian soft-furred rat) ***Genus '' Halmaheramys'' ***Genus '' Komodomys'' ***Genus '' Lenomys'' (trefoil-toothed rat) ***Genus '' Papagomys'' - Flores giant rats ***Genus '' Paruromys'' (Sulawesian giant rat) ***Genus '' Paulamys'' ***Species "''Rattus''" ''timorensis'' ***Genus ''

Sundamys ''Sundamys'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae, found mostly in Indonesia and Malaysia.Camacho-Sanchez, M., Jennifer A. Leonard, Yuli Fitriana, Marie-Ka Tilak, and Pierre-Henri Fabre. 2017. "The generic status of Rattus annandalei (Bonho ...

'' - giant Sunda rats ***Genus '' Taeromys'' **'' Dacnomys'' division ***Genus '' Chiromyscus'' (Fea's tree rat) ***Genus '' Dacnomys'' (Large-toothed giant rat) ***Genus ''

Lenothrix The gray tree rat (''Lenothrix canus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. monotypic taxon, only species in the genus ''Lenothrix''. It is found in forests in Indonesia and Malaysia. A common species, the International Union for Conse ...

'' (grey tree rat) ***Genus '' Leopoldamys'' - long-tailed giant rats ***Genus '' Margaretamys'' - margareta rats ***Genus '' Niviventer'' - white-bellied rats ***Genus '' Saxatilomys'' ***Genus '' Tonkinomys'' **'' Echiothrix'' division ***Genus '' Echiothrix'' ***Genus '' Hyorhinomys'' ***Genus '' Melasmothrix'' (lesser Sulawesian shrew rat) ***Genus '' Paucidentomys'' ***Genus '' Sommeromys'' ***Genus '' Tateomys'' - greater Sulawesian shrew rats ***Genus '' Waiomys'' - Sulawesi water rat **'' Maxomys'' division ***Genus '' Crunomys'' - Philippine and Sulawesian shrew rats ***Genus '' Maxomys'' (rajah rats) **''

Micromys ''Micromys'' is a genus of small rodents in the subfamily Murinae. The genus contains two living species: the widespread Eurasian harvest mouse (''Micromys minutus'') of much of Europe and Asia; and the more restricted Indochinese harvest mouse ( ...

'' division (alternately considered a distinct tribe, Micromyini) ***Genus ''

'' (Old World harvest mice) **''

'' division ***Genus '' Abditomys'' ***Genus ''

Bandicota ''Bandicota'' is a genus of rodents from Asia known as the bandicoot rats. Their common name and genus name are derived from the Telugu language word ''pandikokku'' (పందికొక్కు). DNA studies have found the group to be a monop ...

'' - bandicoot rats ***Genus '' Diplothrix'' ***Genus '' Kadarsanomys'' ***Genus '' Limnomys'' ***Genus '' Nesokia'' (short-tailed bandicoot rat) ***Genus ''

Nesoromys The Ceram rat (''Nesoromys ceramicus''), also known as the Seram Island mountain rat, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Seram Island, Indonesia, where it has been recorded on Mount Mansuela. It is the only speci ...

'' ***Genus '' Palawanomys'' (Palawan rat) ***Genus ''

'' - typical rats ***Genus '' Tarsomys'' ***Genus '' Tryphomys'' (Mearn's Luzon rat) **'' Srilankamys'' division ***Genus '' Srilankamys'' (Ceylonese rats) **Unknown division ***Genus '' Anonymomys'' (Mindoro rat) *Tribe Vandeleurini **Genus '' Vandeleuria'' - long-tailed climbing mice *''incertae sedis'' **Genus †'' Alormys'' **Genus †'' Coryphomys'' **Genus '' Hadromys'' **Genus †'' Hooijeromys'' **Genus †'' Milimonggamys'' **Genus †'' Rakasamys'' **Genus '' Vernaya'' (Vernay's climbing mouse) **Genus †'' Spelaeomys''

Notes

References

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control . . . Mammal subfamilies Taxa named by Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger