? Old World rats and mice Fossil range: Middle Miocene - Recent
Mus musculus, the House Mouse
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Rodentia Superfamily: Muroidea Family: Muridae Subfamily: Murinae Illiger, 1811
Genera
See text.

The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. This subfamily is larger than all mammal families except the Cricetidae, and is larger than all mammal orders except the bats and the remainder of the rodents. As a result, it has been said that murines are in the process of taking over the world, and humans just came along in the middle of it. The Miocene epoch is a period of time that extends from about 23 to 5. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Binomial name Mus musculus Linnaeus, 1758 Mus musculus is the common house mouse. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms (as opposed to folk taxonomy). ... Phyla Subregnum Parazoa Porifera (sponges) Subregnum Agnotozoa Placozoa (trichoplax) Orthonectida (orthonectids) Rhombozoa (dicyemids) Subregnum Eumetazoa Radiata (unranked) (radial symmetry) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anemones) Bilateria (unranked) (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Subclass Multituberculata (extinct) Plagiaulacida Cimolodonta Subclass Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Subclass Triconodonta (extinct) Subclass Eutheria (includes extinct ancestors)/Placentalia (excludes extinct ancestors) Afrosoricida Artiodactyla Carnivora Cetacea Chiroptera Cimolesta (extinct) Creodonta (extinct) Condylarthra (extinct) Dermoptera Desmostylia (extinct) Dinocerata (extinct) Embrithopoda (extinct) Hyracoidea Insectivora Lagomorpha Litopterna (extinct) Macroscelidea Mesonychia (extinct) Notoungulata (extinct) Perissodactyla... Families Many, see text The order Rodentia is the most numerous of all the branches on the mammal family tree. ... Families see text Muroidea is a large superfamily of rodents. ... Subfamilies See text Muridae is the largest family of mammals. ... Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger (November 19, 1775 - May 1813) was a German entomologist who also worked on birds and mammals. ... In biology, a genus (plural genera) is a taxonomic grouping. ... ... In biological classification, family (Latin: familia, plural familiae) is 1) a rank or 2) a taxon in that rank. ... Subfamilies See text Muridae is the largest family of mammals. ... Orders Subclass Multituberculata (extinct) Plagiaulacida Cimolodonta Subclass Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Subclass Triconodonta (extinct) Subclass Eutheria (includes extinct ancestors)/Placentalia (excludes extinct ancestors) Afrosoricida Artiodactyla Carnivora Cetacea Chiroptera Cimolesta (extinct) Creodonta (extinct) Condylarthra (extinct) Dermoptera Desmostylia (extinct) Dinocerata (extinct) Embrithopoda (extinct) Hyracoidea Insectivora Lagomorpha Litopterna (extinct) Macroscelidea Mesonychia (extinct) Notoungulata (extinct) Perissodactyla... Subfamilies see text Cricetidae is a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. ... Orders Subclass Multituberculata (extinct) Plagiaulacida Cimolodonta Subclass Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Subclass Triconodonta (extinct) Subclass Eutheria (includes extinct ancestors)/Placentalia (excludes extinct ancestors) Afrosoricida Artiodactyla Carnivora Cetacea Chiroptera Cimolesta (extinct) Creodonta (extinct) Condylarthra (extinct) Dermoptera Desmostylia (extinct) Dinocerata (extinct) Embrithopoda (extinct) Hyracoidea Insectivora Lagomorpha Litopterna (extinct) Macroscelidea Mesonychia (extinct) Notoungulata (extinct) Perissodactyla... // Order may refer to: Religious Holy Orders, the rite or sacrament in which clergy are ordained The monastic orders, originating with Anthony the Great and Benedict of Nursia from circa 300 the military orders of the crusades the various chivalric orders established since the 14th century Honors Order (decoration) Legal... Suborders Megachiroptera Microchiroptera See text for families. ... Families See Classification Section The order Rodentia is the most numerous of the branches on the mammal family tree. ...

Description

The Murinae are native to Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia. They are the only terrestrial placental mammals native to Australia. They have also been introduced to all continents except Antarctica, and are serious pest animals. This is particularly true in island communities where they have contributed to the endangerment and extinction of many native animals. Africa is the worlds second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia. ... Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ... Terrestrial literally means of the earth and is used in a variety of contexts: In biology and in the general sense, terrestrial means indicates ground-dwelling (compare aquatic). ... Orders Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia Xenarthra Dermoptera: Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Placentalia and Eutheria are terms used to describe major groupings within the animal class of Mammalia. ... Orders Subclass Multituberculata (extinct) Plagiaulacida Cimolodonta Subclass Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Subclass Triconodonta (extinct) Subclass Eutheria (includes extinct ancestors)/Placentalia (excludes extinct ancestors) Afrosoricida Artiodactyla Carnivora Cetacea Chiroptera Cimolesta (extinct) Creodonta (extinct) Condylarthra (extinct) Dermoptera Desmostylia (extinct) Dinocerata (extinct) Embrithopoda (extinct) Hyracoidea Insectivora Lagomorpha Litopterna (extinct) Macroscelidea Mesonychia (extinct) Notoungulata (extinct) Perissodactyla... The term invasive species refers to a subset of those species defined as introduced species or non-indigenous species. ... An endangered species is a species whose population is so small that it is in danger of becoming extinct. ... In biology and ecology, extinction is the ceasing of existence of a species or group of species. ...

Two prominent murine human commensals have become vital laboratory animals. The Brown Rat and House Mouse are both used as medical subjects and are among a handful of animals where the full genome has been sequenced. In ecology, commensalism is an interaction between two living organisms, where one organism benefits and the other is not affected. ... The data suggest that use of laboratory animals allowed to add 28 years of life to an average human. ... Binomial name Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769) The Brown Rat or Norway Rat (Rattus norvegicus) is one of the best-known and common rats, and also one of the largest. ... Binomial name Mus musculus Linnaeus, 1758 Mus musculus is the common house mouse. ... In biology the genome of an organism is the whole hereditary information of an organism that is encoded in the DNA (or, for some viruses, RNA). ...

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. Molar may refer to: Molar (tooth), the fourth kind of tooth in mammals. ... Families see text Muroidea is a large superfamily of rodents. ...

Fossils

The first known appearance of the Murinae in the fossil 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 is thought to lead to Rattus and relatives. All of these fossils are found in the well-preserved and easily dated Siwalik fossil beds of Pakistan. The transition from Potwarmus to Antemus to Progonomys and Karnimata is considered an excellent example of anagenic evolution. A fossil Ammonite Fossils (from Latin fossus, literally having been dug up) are the mineralized or otherwise preserved remains or traces (such as footprints) of animals, plants, and other organisms. ... The Miocene epoch is a period of time that extends from about 23 to 5. ... Mus can refer to: a genus, to which the mouse belongs a city in Turkey, capital of Mus Province Mus, a commune of the Gard département in France Mus, a spanish card game Also see: MUS This is a disambiguation page — a list of articles associated with the... This is an article about wild rats; for pet rats, see Fancy rat Species 50 species; see text *Several subfamilies of Muroids include animals called rats. ... The Siwalik Hills (sometimes spelled Shiwalik, Shivalik, or Sivalik) are a sub-Himalayan mountain range running 1,600 km long from the Tista River, Sikkim, through Nepal and India, into northern Pakistan. ... Anagenesis is the progressive evolution of species involving a change in gene frequency in an entire population rather than a cladogenetic branching event. ...

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 Asian forms. No tribal level taxonomy has been attempted for the complete subfamily. 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. Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic classification in between family and genus. ... Taxonomy (from Greek verb tassein = to classify and nomos = law, science, cf economy) may refer to: the science of classifying living things (see alpha taxonomy) a system of classification in some other field Taxonomy was once only the science of classifying living organisms, but later the word was applied in...

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. They have been assigned a new subfamily status, Deomyinae. [[{{{diversity_link}}}|Diversity]] {{{diversity}}} Binomial name Uranomys ruddi Trinomial name {{{trinomial}}} Type Species {{{type_species}}} {{{subdivision_ranks}}} [[Image:{{{range_map}}}|{{{range_map_width}}}|]] Synonyms {{{synonyms}}} Rudds Mouse or the White-bellied Brush-furred Rat, Uranomys ruddi, is the only member of the genus Uranomys. ... Species Lophuromys luteogaster Lophuromys medicaudatus Lophuromys woosnami Lophuromys angolensis Lophuromys aquilus Lophuromys brevicaudus Lophuromys brunneus Lophuromys chrysopus Lophuromys cinereus Lophuromys dieterleni Lophuromys dudui Lophuromys huttereri Lophuromys flavopunctatus Lophuromys melanonyx Lophuromys nudicaudus Lophuromys rahmi Lophuromys roseveari Lophuromys sikapusi Lophuromys verhageni Lophuromys zena The brush-furred mice, genus Lophuromys are a peculiar... Species Acomys cahirinus Acomys cilicicus Acomys cineraseus Acomys ignitus Acomys kempi Acomys louisae Acomys minous Acomys mullah Acomys nesiotes Acomys percivali Acomys russatus Acomys spinosissimus Acomys subspinosus Acomys wilsoni The term spiny mouse refers to any species of rodent within the genus Acomys. ... Genera Gerbillus Microdillus Meriones Rhombomys Psammomys Sekeetamys Brachiones Desmodilliscus Pachyuromys Tatera Taterillus Desmodillus Gerbillurus Ammodillus For the chess engine, see Gerbil (chess). ... Molecular phylogeny is the use of the structure of molecules to gain information on an organisms evolutionary relationships. ... Genera Acomys Deomys Lophuromys Uranomys The subfamily Deomyinae consists of four genera of mouse-like rodents that were placed in the subfamilies Murinae and Dendromurinae until very recently. ...

The Murinae have been divided into 121 genera and 519 species. The genera are listed alphabetically here.

List of Genera

• Subfamily Murinae - Old World rats and mice
  • Genus Abditomys
  • Genus Aethomys - bush rats
  • Genus Anisomys - Powerful-toothed Rat
  • Genus Anonymomys - Mindoro Rat
  • Genus Apodemus - old world field mice
  • Genus Apomys
  • Genus Archboldomys - Mount Isaro Shrew Rat
  • Genus Arvicanthis - unstriped grass mice
  • Genus Bandicota - bandicoot rats
  • Genus Batomys - Luzon and Mindanao forest rats
  • Genus Berylmys - white-toothed rats
  • Genus Bullimus
  • Genus Bunomys
  • Genus Canariomys - Giant Canary Islands Rat
  • Genus Carpomys - Luzon rats
  • Genus Celaenomys
  • Genus Chiromyscus - Fea's Tree Rat
  • Genus Chiropodomys - pencil-tailed tree mice
  • Genus Chiruromys
  • Genus Chrotomys - Luzon striped rats
  • Genus Coccymys
  • Genus Colomys - African Water Rat
  • Genus Conilurus - rabbit rats
  • Genus Coryphomys
  • Genus Crateromys - cloudrunners
  • Genus Cremnomys
  • Genus Crossomys - Earless Water Rat
  • Genus Crunomys - Philippine and Sulawesian shrew rats
  • Genus Dacnomys - Large-toothed Giant Rat
  • Genus Dasymys - Shaggy Swamp Rat
  • Genus Dephomys - defua rats
  • Genus Desmomys
  • Genus Diomys - Manipur Mouse
  • Genus Diplothrix
  • Genus Echiothrix - Sulawesian Spiny Rat
  • Genus Eropeplus - Sulawesian Soft-furred Rat
  • Genus Golunda - Indian Bush Rat
  • Genus Grammomys
  • Genus Hadromys - Manipur Bush Rat
  • Genus Haeromys - pygmy tree mice
  • Genus Hapalomys - marmoset rats
  • Genus Heimyscus
  • Genus Hybomys - hump-nosed mice
  • Genus Hydromys - water rats
  • Genus Hylomyscus - African wood mice
  • Genus Hyomys - white-eared rats
  • Genus Kadarsanomys
  • Genus Komodomys
  • Genus Lamottemys
  • Genus Leggadina
  • Genus Lemniscomys - striped grass mice
  • Genus Lenomys - Trefoil-toothed Rat
  • Genus Lenothrix - Grey Tree Rat
  • Genus Leopoldamys - long-tailed giant rats
  • Genus Leporillus - Australian stick-nest rats
  • Genus Leptomys
  • Genus Limnomys
  • Genus Lorentzimys - New Guinea jumping mouse
  • Genus Macruromys - New Guinean rats
  • Genus Malacomys - big-eared swamp rats
  • Genus Mallomys - giant tree rats
  • Genus Malpaisomys - Canarian Lava Fields Mouse
  • Genus Margaretamys - Margareta's rats
  • Genus Mastomys - multimammate rats
  • Genus Maxomys - rajah rats
  • Genus Mayermys - Shaw-Mayer's Mouse
  • Genus Melasmothrix - Lesser Sulawesian Shrew Rat
  • Genus Melomys - banana rats
  • Genus Mesembriomys - tree rats
  • Genus Microhydromys
  • Genus Micromys - Old World Harvest Mouse
  • Genus Millardia - Asian soft-furred rats
  • Genus Muriculus - Stripe-backed Mouse
  • Genus Mus - typical mice
  • Genus Mylomys - African Groove-toothed Rat
  • Genus Myomys
  • Genus Neohydromys
  • Genus Nesokia - Short-tailed Bandicoot Rat
  • Genus Niviventer - white-bellied rats
  • Genus Notomys - Australian hopping mice
  • Genus Oenomys - rufous-nosed rats
  • Genus Otomys - groove-toothed or vlei rats
  • Genus Palawanomys - Palawan Rat
  • Genus Papagomys - Flores giant rats
  • Genus Parahydromys - Mountain Water Rat
  • Genus Paraleptomys
  • Genus Parotomys - whistling rats
  • Genus Paruromys - Sulawesian giant rat
  • Genus Paulamys
  • Genus Pelomys - groove-toothed creek rats
  • Genus Phloeomys - slender-tailed cloud rats
  • Genus Pithecheir - monkey-footed rats
  • Genus Pogonomelomys - Rummler's mosaic tailed rats
  • Genus Pogonomys - prehensile-tailed rats
  • Genus Praomys - African soft-furred rats
  • Genus Pseudohydromys - New Guinea false water rats
  • Genus Pseudomys - Australian native mice
  • Genus Rattus - typical rats
  • Genus Rhabdomys - Four-striped Grass Mouse
  • Genus Rhynchomys - shrewlike rats
  • Genus Solomys - naked-tailed rats
  • Genus Spelaeomys
  • Genus Srilankamys - Ceylonese rats
  • Genus Stenocephalemys - Ethiopian narrow-headed rats
  • Genus Stenomys
  • Genus Stochomys - Target Rat
  • Genus Sundamys - giant Sunda rats
  • Genus Taeromys
  • Genus Tarsomys
  • Genus Tateomys - greater Sulawesian shrew rats
  • Genus Thallomys - acacia rats
  • Genus Thamnomys - thicket rats
  • Genus Tokudaia - Ryukyu spiny rats
  • Genus Tryphomys - Mearn's Luzon Rat
  • Genus Uromys - giant naked-tailed rats
  • Genus Vandeleuria - long-tailed climbing mice
  • Genus Vernaya - Vernay's Climbing Mouse
  • Genus Xenuromys - White-tailed New Guinea Rat
  • Genus Xeromys - False Water Rat
  • Genus Zelotomys - stink mice
  • Genus Zyzomys - thick-tailed rats

Species See text. ... Species See text Apodemus is a genus of Eurasian field mice. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Binomial name Canariomys tamarani Lopez-Martinez & Lopez-Jurado, 1987 The Canary Islands Giant Rat (Canariomys tamarani) was endemic to the island of Gran Canaria, part of the Canary Islands, Spain. ... Species Chrotomys whiteheadi Chrotomys mindorensis Chrotomys gonzalesi Chrotomys silaceus Chrotomys sibuyanensis The genus Chrotomys contain a unique group of rodents found only in the Philippines, specifically the islands Luzon, Mindoro, and Sibuyan. ... Species Chrotomys whiteheadi Chrotomys mindorensis Chrotomys gonzalesi Chrotomys silaceus Chrotomys sibuyanensis The genus Chrotomys contain a unique group of rodents found only in the Philippines, specifically the islands Luzon, Mindoro, and Sibuyan. ... [[{{{diversity_link}}}|Diversity]] {{{diversity}}} Binomial name {{{binomial}}} Trinomial name {{{trinomial}}} Type Species {{{type_species}}} Species †Conilurus albipes Conilurus penicillatus [[Image:{{{range_map}}}|{{{range_map_width}}}|]] Synonyms {{{synonyms}}} The rabbit rats, genus Conilurus represent an unusual genus of Old World rats from Australia, New Guinea, and Melville Island. ... Binomial name Crossomys moncktoni Thomas, 1907 The Earless Water Rat (Crossomys moncktoni) is a New Guinea rodent, part of the Hydromys group of the subfamily of Old World rats and mice (Murinae). ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Binomial name Malpaisomys insularis Hutterer, Lopez-Martinez & Michaux, 1988 The lava mouse Malpaisomys insularis is an extinct endemic rodent from the Canary Islands, Spain. ... Binominal name Micromys minutus The Harvest mouse, Micromys minutus is a small rodent native to Europe and Asia. ... Feral mouse A mouse is a mammal that belongs to one of numerous species of small rodents in the genus Mus and various related genera of the family Muridæ (Old World Mice). ... Species alexis cervinus fuscus mitchelli aquillo longicaudatus amplus macrotis mordax sp. ... Species alexis cervinus fuscus mitchelli aquillo longicaudatus amplus macrotis mordax sp. ... Binomial name Papagomys armandvillei The Flores Giant Rat (Papagomys armandvillei) occurs on the island of Flores in Indonesia. ... Species See text Pseudomys is a genus of rodent that contains a wide variety of mice native to Australia and New Guinea. ... This is an article about wild rats; for pet rats, see Fancy rat Species 50 species; see text *Several subfamilies of Muroids include animals called rats. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species See text. ... Species Zyzomys argurus Zyzomys maini Zyzomys palatilis Zyzomys penduculatus Zyzomys woodwardi Zyzomys is a genus of rodents with unusually thick, long tails. ...

Sources and further reading

• Chevret, P., C. Denys, J.-J. Jaeger, J. Michaux, and F.M. Catzeflis. 1993. Molecular evidence that the spiny mouse (Acomys) is more closely related to gerbils (Gerbillinae) than to the true mice (Murinae). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 90:3433-3436.
• Jacobs, L.L. 1978. Fossil rodents (Rhizomyidae and Muridae) from Neogene Siwalik deposits, Pakistan. Bulletin of the Museum of Northern Arizona, 52: 1-103.
• Jansa, S.A. and M. Weksler. Phylogeny of muroid rodents: relationships within and among major lineages as determined by IRBP gene sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 31:256-276.
• McKenna, M.C. and S. K. Bell. 1997. Classification of Mammals above the Species Level. Columbia University Press, New York.
• Michaux, J., A. Reyes, and F. Catzeflis. 2001. Evolutionary history of the most speciose mammals: molecular phylogeny of muroid rodents. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 17:280-293.
• Musser, G.G. and M. D. Carleton. 1993. Family Muridae. Pp. 501-755 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D.E. Wilson and D.M. Reeder eds. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C.
• Nowak, R.M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World, Vol. 2. Johns Hopkins University Press, London.
• Steppan, S.J., R.A. Adkins, and J. Anderson. 2004. Phylogeny and divergence date estimates of rapid radiations in muroid rodents based on multiple nuclear genes. Systematic Biology, 53:533-553.