New data on the poorly known Andean rodent Abrocoma uspallata (Rodentia: Abrocomidae)

Abstract

The caviomorph rodent Abrocoma uspallata Braun, J.K. and Mares, M.A. (2002). Systematics of the Abrocoma cinerea species complex (Rodentia: Abrocomidae), with a description of a new species of Abrocoma. J. Mammal. 83: 1–19, doi: 10.1093/jmammal/83.1.1, stands as the most recently described species within its genus and remains one of the least studied. Known from two localities in northwestern Mendoza Province, Argentina, this elusive rodent has been the subject of four field studies conducted during 2022. The obtained evidence, including craniodental remains and fecal samples, suggest a moderate abundance of the species and a broader geographical range spanning at least 1,050 km2. Abrocoma uspallata has scattered occurrences at mid-elevations, typically around 2,000 m, across the Sierra de Uspallata and adjacent hilly systems. These findings point the species as a pre-Andean Abrocoma Waterhouse, 1837, together with Abrocoma schistacea Thomas, O. (1921). On mammals from the Province of San Juan, Western Argentina. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 8th Series 9: 214–221, which occurs in the nearby province of San Juan. In addition, although treated as Vulnerable according to the last Argentinean conservation assessment, the species should be considered Least Concern.