Tete Veld Aethomys

About the Tete Veld Aethomys

The Tete veld aethomys or Tete veld rat (Aethomys ineptus) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in South Africa and Eswatini. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, shrubland, and grassland. The common name refers to the type locality, Tete, on the Zambesi River.

The Tete veld rat is moderately sized, with a head-body length of 12 to 18 cm (4.7 to 7.1 in), an almost hairless tail measuring 14 to 17 cm (5.5 to 6.7 in), and a weight of 65 to 107 g (2.3 to 3.8 oz). The fur is reddish-brown over most of the body, but ticked with blackish hairs, giving an overall shade varying from brown to cinnamon. The underparts are white or very pale grey, with the fur being sharply demarcated from that on the rest of the body.

Tete veld rats are physically indistinguishable from the closely related red rock rats, and were thought to represent a subspecies of the latter until as recently as 1998. In that year, genetic analysis revealed that the two species were distinct, making the Tete veld rat an example of a cryptic species. Other than analysis of chromosomes or mitochondrial DNA, the two species can only be reliably distinguished by the shape of their spermatozoa... Wikipedia →