Long-tailed Rhipidomys
Rhipidomys macrurus (Gervais, 1855)
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
The cerrado climbing mouse or long-tailed rhipidomys (Rhipidomys macrurus) is an arboreal rodent species in the family Cricetidae from South America. It is found in primary or secondary forests of the cerrado and caatinga in central and eastern Brazil, and has also been seen in the Atlantic Forest. Its karyotype is 2n = 44, FN = 48-52. They are nocturnal animals and can be found in both tree canopies and on the ground.
This species should also not be confused with the cerrado mouse, Thalpomys cerradensis, the cerrado red-nosed mouse, Wiedomys cerradensis, or the cerrado grass mouse, Akodon serrensis. The Atlantic Forest climbing mouse (Rhipidomys mastacalis) has sometimes been similarly referred to as the "long-tailed climbing mouse". Rodents of genus Vandeleuria are also commonly known as long-tailed climbing mice.
Wikipedia contributors, Cerrado climbing mouse; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:52:45.176597+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Rhipidomys macrurus (Gervais, 1855)
- Name authority
- (Gervais, 1855)
- Common name
- Long-tailed Rhipidomys
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Cricetidae
- Genus
- Rhipidomys
- 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
- suborderMyomorpha Brandt, 1855
- superfamilyMuroidea Illiger, 1811
- familyCricetidae Fischer, 1817
- subfamilySigmodontinae Wagner, 1843
- genusRhipidomys Tschudi, 1845
- speciesRhipidomys macrurus (Gervais, 1855)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Rhipidomys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Coues' RhipidomysRhipidomys couesi (J. A. Allen & Chapman, 1893) | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Buff-bellied Climbing MouseRhipidomys fulviventer Thomas, 1896 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Broad-footed Climbing MouseRhipidomys latimanus (Tomes, 1860) | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Peruvian RhipidomysRhipidomys modicus Thomas, 1926 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Charming Climbing MouseRhipidomys venustus Thomas, 1900 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Eastern Amazon RhipidomysRhipidomys emiliae (J. A. Allen, 1916) | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Southern Andean RhipidomysRhipidomys austrinus Thomas, 1921 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cauca Climbing MouseRhipidomys caucensis J. A. Allen, 1913 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Gardner's RhipidomysRhipidomys gardneri Patton, da Silva & Malcolm, 2000 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| White-footed Climbing MouseRhipidomys leucodactylus (Tschudi, 1845) | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| MacConnell's Climbing MouseRhipidomys macconnelli de Winton, 1900 | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Atlantic Forest RhipidomysRhipidomys mastacalis (Lund, 1840) | CricetidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
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=970731 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:4SB7L. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.