Abrocoma boliviensis

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	RODENTIA	ABROCOMIDAE

Scientific Name:

Abrocoma boliviensis

Species Authority:

Glanz & Anderson, 1990

Common Name/s:

English

–

Bolivian Chinchilla Rat, Bolivian Chincilla Rat

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Critically Endangered B1ab(i,ii,iii) ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2008

Assessor/s

Dunnum, J., Vargas, J. & Bernal, N.

Evaluator/s:

Amori, G. (Small Nonvolant Mammal Red List Authority) & Schipper, J. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Justification:
Listed as Critically Endangered because its extent of occurrence is less than 100 km², all individuals are in a single location, and there is continuing decline in the extent and quality of its cloud forest habitat.

History:

1996

–

Vulnerable (Baillie and Groombridge 1996)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is known only from the vicinity of the type locality: Comarapa, Province Manuel M. Caballero, in the department of Santa Cruz, Bolivia (Woods and Kilpatrick, 2005). It may range more widely, although it may also be restricted to the currently known range, which covers an area less than 100 km². It has been found at an elevation of 1,800 m asl.
Countries:	Native: Bolivia
Range Map:	(click map to view full version)

Population [top]

Population:	It is a rare species (Woods and Kilpatrick, 2005).
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	It is associated with rocky areas within cloud forest. It is not known from outside of cloud forest, and may be specialized to rocky areas in this habitat. This rodent is vegetarian and lives in burrows. In common with other hystricognath rodents, it gives birth to precocial young after presumably a lengthy gestation period (Redford and Eisenberg, 1992).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Major threats to this species include clearance of cloud forest for cattle pasture. The range of the species is divided by a road, along which human colonization is taking place, further fragmenting the habitat. Abrocoma species have previously been collected for their fur, although it does not seem that this species was affected by the fur trade.

Major Threat(s):

Major threats to this species include clearance of cloud forest for cattle pasture. The range of the species is divided by a road, along which human colonization is taking place, further fragmenting the habitat. Abrocoma species have previously been collected for their fur, although it does not seem that this species was affected by the fur trade.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	This rodent is not known to occur in any protected areas. There is an urgent need to protect the distinct area of Comarapa. Further research is needed in this area to try to find additional populations.

Conservation Actions:

This rodent is not known to occur in any protected areas. There is an urgent need to protect the distinct area of Comarapa. Further research is needed in this area to try to find additional populations.

Citation:	Dunnum, J., Vargas, J. & Bernal, N. 2008. Abrocoma boliviensis. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 January 2009.
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