Cuniculus hernandezi

Cuniculus hernandezi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Cuniculidae
Genus: Cuniculus
Species: C. hernandezi
Binomial name
Cuniculus hernandezi
Castro, López & Becerra, 2010

Cuniculus hernandezi is a species of paca that is endemic to the Central Andes in Colombia. Individuals may weigh over 14 pounds (6.4 kg), making C. hernandezi the third-largest rodent species worldwide. The species is very similar to the mountain paca, Cuniculus taczanowskii, but analysis of its mitochondrial DNA revealed that it was a distinct species.[1] The specific epithet honors Colombian biologist Dr. Jorge Hernández Camacho.[2] Héctor Ramírez-Chaves and Sergio Solari, in 2014, considered that the species is not an available name (nomen nudum) according to the rules of the current International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). [3]

References

  1. Rodríguez, Elizabeth Cañas (28 April 2010). "New Discovery: Third Biggest Rodent in the World". UN Periódico.
  2. Castro, Jose J.; Bautista López, Juan; Becerra, Francisco (2010). "Una nueva especie de Cuniculus (Rodentia:Cuniculidae) de la Cordillera Central de Colombia" [A new species of Cuniculus (Rodentia:Cuniculidae) from the central mountains of Colombia]. Revista de la Asociación Colombiana de Ciencias Biológicas (in Spanish) (22): 122–131.
  3. RAMÍREZ-CHAVES, H.E.; SOLARI, S. (2014). "Sobre la disponibilidade del nombre Cuniculus hernandezi Castro, López y Becerra, 2010 (Rodentia: Cuniculidae)". Actualidades Biológicas 36 (100): 59–62.
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