NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Guinean Arvicanthis
Arvicanthis rufinus (Temminck, 1853)
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 Guinean grass rat (Arvicanthis rufinus) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae.
It is found in Benin, Ghana, Togo, possibly Cameroon, possibly Central African Republic, possibly Ivory Coast, possibly Guinea, possibly Liberia, and possibly Sierra Leone.
Its natural habitats are moist savanna, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, arable land, pastureland, and urban areas.
Wikipedia contributors, Guinean grass rat; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:35:50.552135+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Arvicanthis rufinus (Temminck, 1853)
- Name authority
- (Temminck, 1853)
- Common name
- Guinean Arvicanthis
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Muridae
- Genus
- Arvicanthis
- 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
- familyMuridae Illiger, 1811
- subfamilyMurinae Illiger, 1811
- genusArvicanthis Lesson, 1842
- speciesArvicanthis rufinus (Temminck, 1853)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Arvicanthis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Blick's ArvicanthisArvicanthis blicki Frick, 1914 | MuridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Ethiopian ArvicanthisArvicanthis abyssinicus (Rüppell, 1842) | MuridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Sudanian ArvicanthisArvicanthis ansorgei Thomas, 1910 | MuridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Neumann's ArvicanthisArvicanthis neumanni (Matschie, 1894) | MuridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Arvicanthis setosus Thomas, 1905 Thomas, 1905 | synonym |
| Arvicanthis mordax Thomas, 1911 Thomas, 1911 | synonym |
| Arvicanthis occidentalis Wroughton, 1906 Wroughton, 1906 | 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=970810 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:H3ST. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.