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Muennink's spiny rat
Conservation status
Critically Endangered  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Family:	Muridae
Genus:	Tokudaia
Species:	T. muenninki
Binomial name
Tokudaia muenninki (Johnson, 1946)

Muennink's spiny rat or Okinawa spiny rat (Tokudaia muenninki, Japanese: オキナワトゲネズミ, romanized: Okinawa togenezumi or 沖縄棘鼠) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. Endemic to Okinawa Island, Japan, its natural habitat is subtropical moist broadleaf forest. The karyotype has 2n = 44. Its sex chromosomes are abnormally large, while the other two species in Tokudaia have lost their Y chromosome. It is found only on the northern part (Yanbaru area) of the island, above 300 m, and is thought to inhabit an area of less than 3 km.

The head and body are up to 7 inches long with a 5-inch tail. They weigh up to 7 ounces. They have a short thick body and dense fur, consisting of fine hairs and coarse, grooved spines (hence the common name “spiny rat”). The fur is brownish above and grayish white below with a faint orange tinge. The spines on the animal's back are black throughout while the spines underneath are usually white with a reddish-brown tip. The spines cover the body except for the regions around the mouth, ears, feet and tail. The tail is bi-colored for its entire length.

The species is threatened by deforestation, predation by feral cats and introduced mongooses, and competition with introduced black rats. In March 2008, the first wild specimen in over 30 years was caught in the northern part of Okinawa.

References

1. ^ Ishii, N. (2016). "Tokudaia muenninki". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T21972A22409515. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T21972A22409515.en. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
2. ^ Musser, G. G.; Carleton, M. D. (2005). "Superfamily Muroidea". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 1512–1513. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
3. Murata, C.; Yamada, F.; Kawauchi, N.; Matsuda, Y.; Kuroiwa, A. (2011-12-24). "The Y chromosome of the Okinawa spiny rat, Tokudaia muenninki, was rescued through fusion with an autosome". Chromosome Research. 20 (1): 111–125. doi:10.1007/s10577-011-9268-6. PMID 22198613.
4. "Okinawa Spiny Rat". EDGE of Existence.
5. "EDGE of Existence". EDGE of Existence. Retrieved 2017-03-02.
6. "幻のネズミ、30年ぶり捕獲 沖縄北部の絶滅危惧種". Archived from the original on 2008-03-09. Retrieved 2008-03-09.

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• IUCN Red List critically endangered species
• Tokudaia
• Rodents of Asia
• Endemic fauna of the Ryukyu Islands
• Endemic mammals of Japan
• Mammals described in 1946
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