RODENTS OF
SOUTHERN
AFRICA

#porcus pig ,  Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. Porcupines have a relatively high longevity and hold the record for being the longest-living rodent, with one individual named Cooper living past 32 years.

#Lepus saxatilis ,  The scrub hare  is one of two subspecies of hares found in southern Namibia, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho.[2][3] Although it is listed as a least concern species, the population has been declining and is expected to decline by 20% over the next 100 years.

#Paraxerus cepapi ,  Also known as the yellow-footed squirrel or tree squirrel, is an African bush squirrel which is native to woodlands of the southern Afrotropics. Primarily vegetarian, but like most rodents, they take insect prey and use their front feet to manipulate food items when feeding. They scatter-hoard seeds next to tree trunks or grass tufts, thereby facilitating tree regeneration.

#Geosciurus princeps ,  Native to southwestern Angola, western Namibia, and western South Africa. It is also known as the Kaoko ground squirrel or the Damara ground squirrel. It is the closest relative of the Cape ground squirrel which is so similar in appearance that the two are difficult to distinguish in the field.[5] Both species have long bushy black and white tails with a white stripe from the shoulder towards the rump.

#Mastomys natalensis ,  The Natal multimammate mouse is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is also known as the Natal multimammate rat, the common African rat, or the African soft-furred mouse.  Six different genetic groups can be distinguished in different regions: one in western Africa, one in central Africa, one in southern Africa and three in eastern Africa.

#Mus minutoides ,  One of the smallest rodents. It is widespread within sub-Saharan Africa, and is kept as a pet in other parts of the world. Like the common house mouse, it is a member of the enormous superfamily Muroidea, which includes about 1000 different species.

#Parotomys brantsii ,  Brants's whistling rat or Brants' whistling rat is one of two species of murid rodent in the genus Parotomys. It is found in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and pastureland. Brants's whistling rat is a fairly large species with a short, blunt head.

#Desmodillus auricularis ,  The Cape short-eared gerbil  is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is the only species in the genus Desmodillus. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Its natural habitats are hot deserts and temperate desert.

#Myotomys sloggetti ,  Sloggett's vlei rat or ice rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in southern Lesotho and South Africa where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland, swamps, and rocky areas. Its name commemorates Col. Arthur Sloggett who served in South Africa and collected at Deelfontein in 1902.

#Petromus typicus ,  An African rodent found among rocky outcroppings. The name "dassie" means "hyrax" in Afrikaans and the two animals are found in similar habitats. Petromus means "rock mouse" and dassie rats are one of many rodents sometimes called rock rats. The family and genus names are sometimes misspelled as Petromyidae and Petromys.

#Hypogeomys antimena,  also known as the votsotsa or votsovotsa, is a nesomyid  rodent found only in the Menabe region of Madagascar. It is an endangered species due to habitat loss, slow reproduction, and limited range (200 square kilometres north of Morondava, between the rivers Tomitsy and Tsiribihina) [Pairs are monogamous and females bear only one or two young per year.

#jumpingshrewsorsengis ,  Can be found in almost any type of habitat, from the Namib Desert to boulder-strewn outcrops in South Africa to thick forest. One species, the North African elephant shrew, remains in the semi-arid, mountainous country in the far northwest of Africa. The Somali elephant shrew went unobserved from 1968 to 2020 but was rediscovered by a group of scientists in Djibouti.

#Lepus capensis ,  The Cape hare , also called the desert hare, is a hare native to Africa and Arabia extending into India. The Cape hare is a typical hare, with well-developed legs for leaping and running, and large eyes and ears to look for threats from its environment. Usually, a white ring surrounds the eye. It has a fine, soft coat which varies in colour from light brown to reddish to sandy grey. 

#Geosciurus inauris ,  The Cape ground squirrel has black skin with a coat made of short stiff hairs without underfur. The fur is cinnamon on the back while the face, underbelly, sides of neck and ventral sides of limbs are white. The sides of its body each have a white stripe that stretches from the shoulders to the thighs. The eyes are fairly large and have white lines around them. 

#Pedetes ,  These rodents are generally nocturnal and sleep through the day in burrows they dig. They feed on foliage, roots and other vegetable matter, and occasionally arthropods. Outside the burrow they usually move around by hopping on their hind legs.

#Acomys subspinosus ,  The Cape spiny mouse is a murid rodent found in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. They have a dorsal covering of spiny hairs with dark grey-brown coloration, and a white underbelly. The Cape Spiny Mouse has large eyes and ears and a scaly, nearly bald tail that is brittle and can break off readily either as a whole or in part if it is caught. Their total length is 17 cm, with an 8 cm tail, and they typically weigh 22g.

#Thryonomys swinderianus ,  The greater cane rat  is one of two species of cane rats, a small family of African hystricognath rodents. It lives by reed-beds and riverbanks.  greater cane rats can weigh to approximately 7 to 9 kg (15 to 20 lb). They are considered one of the largest rodents in Africa, behind only the Hystrix porcupines. It has rounded ears, a short nose, and coarse bristly hair. Its forefeet are smaller than its hind feet, each with three toes.

#Mastomys coucha ,  The southern multimammate mouse or southern African mastomys is a species of rodent in the family Muridae which is endemic to southern Africa (Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe). It is called a multimammate mouse because it can have 8 to 12 pairs of mammae (milk producing glands).

#Cricetomys gambianus ,  known commonly as the African giant pouched rat, is a species of nocturnal pouched rat of the giant pouched rat genus Cricetomys, in the family Nesomyidae. The species is among the largest muroids in the world, growing up to about 0.9 m (3 ft) long, including the tail, which makes up half of its total length.

#Heliophobius argenteocinereus ,  The silvery mole-rat, silvery blesmol, or silky mole-ratis a species of mole-rat of East Africa which occurs in southern Kenya, Tanzania, southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique and Malawi. Solitary and aggressive, little is known about its ecology or behavior.

#Brachytarsomys albicauda ,  The white-tailed antsangy is a species of rodent in the family Nesomyidae. It is found only in Madagascar.  Can be found in east­ern Mada­gas­car from Maro­jejy (north­east) to An­drin­gi­tra Mas­sif (south­east). This is a long nar­row strip of land stretch­ing from north to south which has patches of rain­for­est.

#Nesomys rufus ,  The island mouse or eastern red forest ratis a species of rodent in the family Nesomyidae. It is found only in Madagascar.