The Mzab gundi (''Massoutiera mzabi'') is a species of

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 ...

in the family Ctenodactylidae. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

within the genus ''Massoutiera''. It is found in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

, and possibly

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

. The Mzab gundi can live in a variety of climates, including arid deserts with sparse vegetation and annual rainfall less than 20 mm. However, it lacks many of the adaptations other rodents use to cope with such extreme environments, instead relying on behavior to survive in those regions.

References

Mzab gundi The Mzab gundi (''Massoutiera mzabi'') is a species of rodent in the family Ctenodactylidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Massoutiera''. It is found in Algeria, Chad, Mali, Niger, and possibly Libya Libya, officially the State of ...

Rodents of North Africa Fauna of the Sahara

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Fernand Lataste {{rodent-stub