Barbary Striped Grass Mouse

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Family:	Muridae
Genus:	Lemniscomys
Species:	L. barbarus

Binomial name

Lemniscomys barbarus
(Linnaeus, 1766)

Subspecies

L. b. albolineatus
L. b. barbarus
L. b. convicutus
L. b. fasciatus
L. b. manteufli
L. b. spekei
L. b. zebra

The Barbary Striped Grass Mouse (Lemniscomys barbarus), also called the African Striped Grass Mouse or the Zebra Mouse, is a small rodent of the suborder Myomorpha, native to Africa, and with striped fur. There are about eleven different species of striped grass mouse,^[1] of which Lemniscomys barbarus is among the smallest, and among the most frequently encountered in captivity.^[2]

In the wild, the barbary striped grass mouse inhabits areas such as dry bush and grass savannahs and semi-desert. It is found particularly in North Africa: Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia.^[1]

The adult reaches a size of 8 to 12 cm, from head to body; the tail is slightly longer. The average weight is 30 to 40 grams.

The male is sexually mature at ten weeks, the female at five to six months. The gestation period is twenty-one days, and a litter would normally contain about five young. The young are born blind and hairless.^[1]

The barbary striped grass mouse is active by day, and is a social animal.^[1] Its typical behaviour is busy and inquisitive.^[2]

Subspecies of Lemniscomys barbarus include Lemniscomys barbarus albolineatus, Lemniscomys barbarus convicutus, Lemniscomys barbarus fasciatus, Lemniscomys barbarus manteufli, Lemniscomys barbarus spekei, and Lemniscomys barbarus zebra.^[2]

The lifespan of the striped grass mouse is short. In the wild, they generally do not live more than six months;^[1] in captivity, it may be as long as four years, or even more, but according to Russel Tofts, even in captivity, they seldom live for more than two and a half years.^[2]