Synaptomys

Bog lemming

Bog lemming

Genus of mammals

Synaptomys is a genus of North American lemmings. These animals live in wet forested and open areas. They are small, cylindrical rodents with large heads and short ears, legs, and tails. They eat green vegetation such as grasses and sedges. They are often found in colonies.

Quick Facts Bog lemmings Temporal range: Early Pliocene - recent, Scientific classification ...

Systematics

The genus Synaptomys comprises two extant species and 10 extinct species. S. borealis is sometimes placed in the genus Mictomys.

Extant species

Extinct species

  • Florida bog lemming (S. australis Simpson 1928)[4]
  • Bunker's bog lemming (S. bunkeri Hibbard 1939)[3][4]
  • Morgan's bog lemming (S. morgani Martin et al. 2003)[3]

A number of other fossil species have been included here but have since been transferred to other genera, such as Mictomys[5] and Praesynaptomys.[6]

References

  1. [1]
    "Synaptomys borealis - Northern Bog Lemming". Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  2. [2]
    "Synaptomys cooperi - Southern Bog Lemming". Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  3. [3]
    "Synaptomys". Paleobiology Database. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  4. [4]
    Kurtén, Björn; Elaine Anderson (1980). Pleistocene Mammals of North America. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 268–269. ISBN 0-231-03733-3. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  5. [5]
    "Mictomys". Fossilworks.
  6. [6]
    "Praesynaptomys". Fossilworks.

Further reading
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