NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Cabrera's Hutia
Mesocapromys angelcabrerai (Varona, 1979)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Cabrera's hutia (Mesocapromys angelcabrerai) is a small, critically endangered, rat-like mammal found only in Cuba. It lives in communal shelters in swamps and coastal mangrove forests, and is threatened by habitat loss. It is a member of the hutia subfamily (Capromyinae), a group of rodents native to the Caribbean that are mostly endangered or extinct.
Its species name, angelcabrerai, is in honour of Spanish zoologist Ángel Cabrera.
Wikipedia contributors, Cabrera's hutia; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:24:36.389865+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mesocapromys angelcabrerai (Varona, 1979)
- Name authority
- (Varona, 1979)
- Common name
- Cabrera's Hutia
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Echimyidae
- Genus
- Mesocapromys
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderRodentia Bowdich, 1821
- suborderHystricomorpha Brandt, 1855
- infraorderHystricognathi Brandt, 1855
- familyEchimyidae Gray, 1825
- subfamilyCapromyinae Smith, 1842
- tribeCapromyini Smith, 1842
- genusMesocapromys Varona, 1970
- speciesMesocapromys angelcabrerai (Varona, 1979)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mesocapromys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Dwarf HutiaMesocapromys nanus (G. M. Allen, 1917) | EchimyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| San Felipe HutiaMesocapromys sanfelipensis (Varona & Garrido, 1970) | EchimyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-tailed HutiaMesocapromys melanurus (Poey, 1865) | EchimyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Capromys angelcabrerai Varona, 1979 Varona, 1979 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=584869 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3ZZYT. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.