''Pseudomys'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

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 ...

that contains a wide variety of

mice A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

native to

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 ...

and

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 ...

. They are among the few

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth, as opposed to extraterrestrial. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on o ...

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 ...

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 ...

s that colonised Australia without

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

intervention.

Natural history

This genus contains a number of species with different habits making generalisation difficult. The overall body size varies widely, ranging from 60 to 160 mm. The tail is 60–180 mm and the weight is recorded from 12 to 90 g. They inhabit a wide variety of

habitats In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

from

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

s to

plain In geography, a plain, commonly known as flatland, is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and ...

s and

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

s. The animals are

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

and spend the day in

burrow file:Chipmunk-burrow (exits).jpg, An eastern chipmunk at the entrance of its burrow A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to construct a space suitable for habitation or temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of Animal lo ...

s. Food also varies with some species eating

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

root In vascular plants, the roots are the plant organ, organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often bel ...

s and

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

s while others feed primarily on

grass Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family (biology), family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and spe ...

es. The pebble-mound mice are unique in creating mounds of stones around their burrows. Several species of ''Pseudomys'' are threatened due to competition with introduced species and

habitat destruction 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 ...

. Several others are probably

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 ...

Etymology

The name ''Pseudomys'' means "false mouse" presumably in reference to both its similarity and uniqueness from "true mice" in the genus '' Mus''.

Species

Genus ''Pseudomys'' - Australian native mice * Ash-grey mouse, ''Pseudomys albocinereus'' * Silky mouse, ''Pseudomys apodemoides'' * Plains rat, ''Pseudomys australis'' *

Bolam's mouse Bolam's mouse (''Pseudomys bolami'') is a species of nocturnal, burrowing rodent in the family Muridae that inhabits the semi arid and southern arid regions of Australia.Moseby, K. E., & Read, J. L. (1998). Population dynamics and movement patter ...

, ''Pseudomys bolami'' * Kakadu pebble-mound mouse, ''Pseudomys calabyi'' *

Western pebble-mound mouse Western pebble-mound mouse or Ngadji (''Pseudomys chapmani'') is a burrowing and mound building rodent in the family Muridae. They occur in the Pilbara, a remote region in the northwest of Australia. Taxonomy The species was described by D.J. ...

, ''Pseudomys chapmani'' *

Little native mouse The little native mouse (''Pseudomys delicatulus''), also known as the delicate mouse, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. The Kunwinjku people of western Arnhem Land call this little creature ''kijbuk''. It is found in Western Austr ...

, ''Pseudomys delicatulus'' * Desert mouse, ''Pseudomys desertor'' *

Smoky mouse The smoky mouse (''Pseudomys fumeus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae native to southeastern Australia. It was first described in 1934 and its species name is Latin for "smoky". As its name suggests, it is a grey-furred mouse, darker ...

, ''Pseudomys fumeus'' * Blue-gray mouse, ''Pseudomys glaucus'' † * Gould's mouse, ''Pseudomys gouldii'' **The Shark Bay mouse was previously described as a separate species ''Pseudomys fieldi'', but is now considered conspecific with ''P. gouldii'' * Eastern chestnut mouse, ''Pseudomys gracilicaudatus'' * Sandy inland mouse, ''Pseudomys hermannsburgensis'' * Long-tailed mouse, ''Pseudomys higginsi'' * Central pebble-mound mouse, ''Pseudomys johnsoni'' **The

Kimberley mouse The central pebble-mound mouse (''Pseudomys johnsoni'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae, native to Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of t ...

was previously described as a separate species ''Pseudomys laborifex'', but is now considered conspecific with ''Pseudomys johnsoni'' * Western chestnut mouse, ''Pseudomys nanus'' *

New Holland mouse The New Holland mouse (''Pseudomys novaehollandiae'') also known as a Pookila is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It was first described by George Waterhouse in 1843. It vanished from view for over a century before its rediscovery in K ...

, ''Pseudomys novaehollandiae'' * Western mouse, ''Pseudomys occidentalis'' * Hastings River mouse, ''Pseudomys oralis'' * Country mouse, ''Pseudomys patrius'' * Pilliga mouse, ''Pseudomys pilligaensis'' * Heath mouse, ''Pseudomys shortridgei'' *'' Pseudomys vandycki'' † (Late Pliocene of Australia)

References

*Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 ''in'' Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. *Nowak, R. M. 1999. ''Walker's Mammals of the World, Vol. 2''. Johns Hopkins University Press, London. {{Authority control Rodent genera Taxa named by John Edward Gray