Paucidentomys is a genus of rodents of a type commonly known as shrew-rats which was discovered in 2012 in a remote rainforest on the Indonesian island, Sulawesi. The genus is monotypic, consisting of the species Paucidentomys vermidax, or the edented Sulawesi rat. The Latin name may also be translated to its other common name "few-toothed worm-eating rat", referring to the fact that they have only two teeth and may live exclusively on a diet of earthworms.
The generic name combines the Latin paucus (few) with dentis (tooth) and the Greek mys (mouse) in reference to the lack of molars. The epithet is a hybrid of vermi (worm) and edax (devourer), in reference to the animal's diet.
Vermivore (from Latin vermi, meaning "worm" and vorare, "to devour") is a zoological term for animals that eat worms (including annelids, nematodes...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Among animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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starts withPaucidentomys vermidax is larger than Melasmothrix naso, Sommeromys macrorhinos and Tateomys macrocercus, similar in size to Tateomys rhinogradoides, smaller than Rhynchomys soricoides and substantially smaller than species of Echiothrix. The face is more elongate than that of any other Sulawesi shrew-rat, but similar in this regard to Rhynchomys. It has a very long rostrum (relative to other Sulawesi shrew-rats), small eyes, large ears, a soft pelage and a long, thick, hairy and dorsoventrally bicoloured tail.
Paucidentomys vermidax is known from Mount Gandangdewata and Mount Latimojong in Sulawesi, Indonesia.
