Status, distribution and research gaps of rodents (Mammalia: Rodentia) in North-Eastern States of India

Abstract

In North Eastern states of India (NE India) there are almost 65% of mammal species of the country but baseline information on small mammals, particularly rodents, for the region is scanty. Present study recorded a total of 59 species of rodents from the NE India out of 100 species reported from Indian Subcontinent. The list contains all the valid taxonomic names and their distribution in the states of NE India. Additionally, five species has been added to the checklist of rodents in India. The list provided 59 species belonging to 30 genera under 5 families of 7 subfamilies. Among them Muridae was recorded to be with highest number of species (31 species), followed by Sciuridae with 22 species, Cricetidae with three species, while Spalacidae and Hystricidae have recorded only two species in each group. Among the eight states of NE India the highest number of species was recorded from Arunachal Pradesh (76 %) and the lowest, from Tripura (22%). Two Threatened, three Near Threatened, two Not Listed and six Data Deficient species have been listed from the present work with four endemic species from this region. The findings of this study indicated the requirements for intensive and extensive surveys in the north-eastern States of India and taxonomic revisions of many species.