Tiny fat mouse facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tiny fat mouse |
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Nesomyidae |
| Genus: | Steatomys |
| Species: |
S. parvus
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| Binomial name | |
| Steatomys parvus Rhoads, 1896
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The tiny fat mouse (Steatomys parvus) is a small rodent that lives in parts of Africa. It's called a "fat mouse" because it can store fat in its body and tail. This stored fat helps it survive when there isn't much food around. This little mouse belongs to a group of rodents called Nesomyidae.
Contents
Where It Lives
The tiny fat mouse lives in many countries across Central and Southern Africa. You can find it in places like Angola, Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Its Home and Habitat
This mouse likes dry areas such as shrublands, which are lands with many bushes. It also lives in dry lowland grasslands, which are open areas covered in grass.
It prefers sandy places and areas where people grow crops. You might also find it on rocky hills, in open forests, and on wide grassy plains.
The tiny fat mouse digs a burrow (a tunnel in the ground) to live in. This burrow can be from 40 centimeters (about 1.3 feet) to one meter (about 3.3 feet) deep. Its burrow doesn't have many tunnels. It usually has one main room in the middle, which the mouse fills with soft fibers and grass to make a cozy nest.
Mouse Neighbors
The tiny fat mouse lives alongside many other small animals. These groups of animals are called "assemblages."
Living in Acacia Woodlands
In open Acacia woodlands, the tiny fat mouse is part of a community of small mammals. The most common rodent in these areas is the African grass rat (Arvicanthis niloticus). After that, the Natal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis) is also very common.
Other small animals found here include shrews from the Crocidura group. Different types of fat mice (Steatomys spp.), Gerbils (Gerbilliscus spp.), tree mice (Dendromus spp.), pouched rats (Saccostomus spp.), and mice from the Nannomys subgenus also live in these woodlands.
Living in Terminalia Woodlands
In a different type of forest, called Terminalia woodland, a different group of small mammals lives. These woodlands have trees like Terminalia mollis and Combretum molle, along with various shrubs.
Here, the Natal multimammate mouse is the most common animal. The tiny fat mouse is also found in large numbers. Other common residents include Kaiser's rock rat (Aethomys kaiseri) and the Barbary striped grass mouse (Lemniscomys barbarus).
How the Tiny Fat Mouse is Doing
The tiny fat mouse lives across a very large area in Africa. Scientists believe there are many of these mice, and their numbers seem to be steady.
Because of its wide range and stable population, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has given this mouse a special conservation status. It is listed as a "least concern" species. This means that, for now, scientists are not worried about it becoming endangered or disappearing.
 | Chris Smalls |
 | Fred Hampton |
 | Ralph Abernathy |
