The dwarf hutia (''Mesocapromys nana'') is a small, critically endangered, rat-like mammal known only from

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

. Aside from tracks, it was last seen in 1937 and may be extinct. It gives birth to only a single offspring at a time, and is threatened by habitat loss and non-native species such as rats and

mongoose A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family has two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to southern Europe, A ...

. The dwarf hutia belongs to the

hutia Hutias (known in Spanish as jutía) are moderately large cavy-like rodents of the subfamily Capromyinae that inhabit the Caribbean islands. Most species are restricted to Cuba, but species are known from all of the Greater Antilles, as well as ...

subfamily (Capromyinae), a group 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 ...

s native to the Caribbean that are mostly endangered or extinct.

Description

Dwarf hutias are heavily built and chubby, almost guinea pig-like rodents with broad rounded heads. They have relatively small eyes and short rounded ears. The average tail and body length of this hutia is unknown, however using a taxidermied specimen and comparing it to the closely related Desmarest's Cuban hutia, we can assume that the average size of the Dwarf hutia would be 20 - 30 centimeters in length. Some hutias have prehensile tails, meaning they are able to use them for gripping and climbing. Unlike the larger litter sizes of many other rodents, the dwarf hutia gave birth to only a single offspring.

Behaviour and Habitat

Adept tree and rock climbers, most hutias are terrestrial and none are known to burrow. Instead, they den in tree nests and among tree trunk cavities and roots, as well as in deep rock crevices, caves, and holes in limestone. There are diurnal and nocturnal species. The long-tailed Cuban hutias are nocturnal and entirely arboreal and thus rarely descend from tree crowns. They resemble tree squirrels as they run along branches and leap from one tree to another. Hutias eat roots, tubers, leaves, stems, and bark; Desmarest’s Cuban hutia also consumes small vertebrates. They obtain all water requirements from their food. Using this information about other hutias, we can make the reasonable assumption that

Conservation

The dwarf hutia became

Critically Endangered An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...

due to

loss of habitat Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

and the introduction of

s and

black rat The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...

s. The discovery of tracks and droppings in the

Zapata Swamp The Zapata Swamp (, ) is a swamp area located on the Zapata Peninsula in the southern Matanzas Province of Cuba, in the municipality of Ciénaga de Zapata. It is located less than southeast of Havana. Species and preservation Within the Zapata S ...

gives hopes that this species has survived. It was initially described based on fossil material, but was later found to be extant. This species is on Re:wild's Search For Lost Species Initiative.

References

Mesocapromys Mammals of Cuba Hutia, dwarf Mammals described in 1917 Taxa named by Glover Morrill Allen Endemic fauna of Cuba {{rodent-stub