Black-tailed Hutia

Open encyclopedia reference

The black-tailed hutia (Mesocapromys melanurus), also known as the bushy-tailed hutia, is a small, furry, rat-like mammal found only in Cuba. It lives in lowland moist 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.

Although it was formerly classified in the genus Mysateles, phylogenetic evidence supports it belonging to the genus Mesocapromys.

Wikipedia contributors, Black-tailed hutia; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T06:51:23.905036+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Mesocapromys melanurus (Poey, 1865)

Name authority

(Poey, 1865)

Common name

Black-tailed 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.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
9. subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
10. infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
11. orderRodentia Bowdich, 1821
12. suborderHystricomorpha Brandt, 1855
13. infraorderHystricognathi Brandt, 1855
14. familyEchimyidae Gray, 1825
15. subfamilyCapromyinae Smith, 1842
16. tribeCapromyini Smith, 1842
17. genusMesocapromys Varona, 1970
18. speciesMesocapromys melanurus (Poey, 1865)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Mesocapromys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 94 records assigned to Echimyidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

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.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=825386 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.

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:3ZZYV. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.