NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Ferreira's Spiny Tree-rat
Mesomys hispidus (Desmarest, 1817)
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.
A female of the Ferreira's spiny tree-rat (Mesomys hispidus)
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Open encyclopedia reference
Ferreira's spiny tree-rat (Mesomys hispidus) is a spiny rat species found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela. The etymology of the species name corresponds to the Latin word hispidus meaning bristly.
Wikipedia contributors, Ferreira's spiny tree-rat; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T11:02:50.692699+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mesomys hispidus (Desmarest, 1817)
- Name authority
- (Desmarest, 1817)
- Common name
- Ferreira's Spiny Tree-rat
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Echimyidae
- Genus
- Mesomys
- 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
- subfamilyEchimyinae Gray, 1825
- tribeEchimyini Gray, 1825
- genusMesomys Wagner, 1845
- speciesMesomys hispidus (Desmarest, 1817)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mesomys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Hidden Spiny Tree-ratMesomys occultus Patton, da Silva & Malcolm, 2000 | EchimyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pará Spiny Tree-ratMesomys stimulax Thomas, 1911 | 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 |
|---|---|
| Mesomys ecaudatus Wagner, 1845 Wagner, 1845 | synonym |
| Mesomys ferrugineus (Günther, 1876) (Günther, 1876) | synonym |
| Echimys hispidus Desmarest, 1817 Desmarest, 1817 | 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=584824 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:424MT. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.