NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Northwestern African Fat Mouse
Steatomys caurinus Thomas, 1912
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
The northwestern fat mouse (Steatomys caurinus) is a species of rodent in the family Nesomyidae. It is native to tropical West Africa where it occurs on grassland and crop land.
Wikipedia contributors, Northwestern fat mouse; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T12:59:08.058927+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Steatomys caurinus Thomas, 1912
- Name authority
- Thomas, 1912
- Common name
- Northwestern African Fat Mouse
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Nesomyidae
- Genus
- Steatomys
- 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
- familyNesomyidae Forsyth Major, 1897
- subfamilyDendromurinae G. M. Allen, 1939
- genusSteatomys Peters, 1846
- speciesSteatomys caurinus Thomas, 1912
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Steatomys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Dainty African Fat MouseSteatomys cuppedius Thomas & Hinton, 1920 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Jackson's African Fat MouseSteatomys jacksoni Hayman, 1936 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Kreb's African Fat MouseSteatomys krebsii Peters, 1852 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Common African Fat MouseSteatomys pratensis Peters, 1846 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tiny African Fat MouseSteatomys parvus Rhoads, 1896 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bocage's African Fat MouseSteatomys bocagei Thomas, 1892 | NesomyidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pousargues's African Fat MouseSteatomys opimus Pousargues, 1894 | NesomyidaeChordata | 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=632719 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:4ZMSZ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.