Gorgas' Oryzomys

Open encyclopedia reference

Oryzomys gorgasi, also known as Gorgas's oryzomys or Gorgas's rice rat, is a rodent in the genus Oryzomys of family Cricetidae. First recorded in 1967, it is known from only a few localities, including a freshwater swamp in the lowlands of northwestern Colombia and a mangrove islet in northwestern Venezuela. It reportedly formerly occurred on the island of Curaçao off northwestern Venezuela; this extinct population has been described as a separate species, O. curasoae, but does not differ morphologically from mainland populations.

O. gorgasi is a medium-sized, brownish species with large, semiaquatically specialized feet. It differs from other Oryzomys species in several features of its skull. Its diet includes crustaceans, insects, and plant material. The species is listed as "Endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a result of destruction of its habitat and competition with the introduced black rat (Rattus rattus).

Wikipedia contributors, Oryzomys gorgasi; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T05:16:29.085892+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Oryzomys gorgasi Hershkovitz, 1971

Name authority

Hershkovitz, 1971

Common name

Gorgas' Oryzomys

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Rodentia

Family

Cricetidae

Genus

Oryzomys

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. suborderMyomorpha Brandt, 1855
13. superfamilyMuroidea Illiger, 1811
14. familyCricetidae Fischer, 1817
15. subfamilySigmodontinae Wagner, 1843
16. genusOryzomys Baird, 1857
17. speciesOryzomys gorgasi Hershkovitz, 1971

Close classified relatives

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

Browse 593 records assigned to Cricetidae.

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=633225 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:74ZGZ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.