Echimyidae

Echimyidae Temporal range: Late Oligocene–Recent PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Several members of the Echimyidae. From top-left, clockwise: coypu, Ferreira's spiny tree-rat, Atlantic spiny rat, Desmarest's hutia .
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Rodentia
Suborder:	Hystricomorpha
Infraorder:	Hystricognathi
Parvorder:	Caviomorpha
Superfamily:	Octodontoidea
Family:	Echimyidae Gray, 1825
Type genus
Echimys F. Cuvier, 1809
Subfamilies
Capromyinae Echimyinae Euryzygomatomyinae Carterodontinae †Adelphomyinae † Eumysopinae †Heteropsomyinae

In general form, most spiny rats resemble rats, although they are more closely related to guinea pigs and chinchillas. Most species have stiff, pointed hairs, or spines, that presumably serve for protection from predators.

Many echimyids can

• Family Echimyidae - spiny rats
  • †Cercomys
  • †Maruchito
  • †Paulacoutomys
  • †Proclinodontomys
  • †Willidewu
  • Subfamily †Adelphomyinae
    • †Adelphomys
    • †Deseadomys
    • †Paradelphomys
    • †Stichomys
    • †Xylechimys
  • Subfamily †Heteropsomyinae - extinct West Indian echimyids
    • †Boromys
    • †
      Brotomys
    • †Heteropsomys
    • †Puertoricomys
  • Subfamily
    Eumysopinae
    • †Acarechimys
    • †Chasichimys
    • †Eumysops
    • †Palaeoechimys
    • †Pampamys
    • †Pattersomys
    • †Protacaremys
    • †Protadelphomys
    • †Sallamys
  • Subfamily Capromyinae - hutias
    • †
      Hexolobodon
    • †Hyperplagiodontia
    • †Isolobodon
    • †
      Rhizoplagiodontia

About Chaetomys

The bristle-spined rat,

Like all living caviomorphs except erethizontids, Chaetomys seems to lack posterior carotid foramina, and together with all echimyids and in contrast to all other caviomorphs, Chaetomys seems to retain the otherwise deciduous premolars (dP4).[11] Some of these characters have been, however, reinterpreted as evidence for affinities between Chaetomys and the Erethizontidae.^[12] A molecular

karyological evidence actually suggests Chaetomys is more closely related to the Erethizontidae than to the Echimyidae, although it branches as the sister group to the rest of the Erethizontidae.^[13]

Phylogeny

The phylogenetic tree of the Echimyidae shows a major split between the subfamily

Capromyidae

. The first major clade contains a majority of arboreal genera (e.g., Phyllomys, Dactylomys, and Mesomys), a few terrestrial taxa (e.g., Proechimys), and a subaquatic one (Myocastor). The second major clade includes fossorial genera (e.g.,

Caribbean islands

(Capromyidae).

Genus-level cladogram of the Echimyidae (including members of the family Capromyidae).

Echimyidae Euryzygomatomyinae             Trinomys   Clyomys   Euryzygomatomys   Carterodon Capromyidae    Plagiodontini   Plagiodontia    Capromyini             Geocapromys             Capromys   Mesocapromys   Mysateles Echimyinae Myocastorini                       Thrichomys   Hoplomys   Proechimys   Myocastor   Callistomys Echimyini             Isothrix     Lonchothrix   Mesomys                                           Pattonomys   Toromys             Makalata   Echimys   Phyllomys   Diplomys   Santamartamys   "Dactylomyines"             Kannabateomys   Dactylomys   Olallamys Arboreal taxa Fossorial taxa

The cladogram has been reconstructed from mitochondrial and nuclear DNA characters.[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][5][6] The green bar shows the polyphyly of the arboreal taxa, due to closer affinities of Callistomys with Myocastorini rather than with Echimyini. The red bar shows the polyphyly of the fossorial taxa, due to closer affinities of Carterodon with Capromyidae rather than with Euryzygomatomyinae. Carterodon has recently (2019) been classified in its own subfamily Carterodontinae.[22]

References and notes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Echimyidae.

Wikispecies has information related to Echimyidae.

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2. ^ Gray, J. E. (1825). "Outline of an attempt at the disposition of the Mammalia into tribes and families with a list of the genera apparently appertaining to each tribe". Annals of Philosophy. 10: 337–344.
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12. ^ Carvalho G (2000). "Substitution of the deciduous premolar Chaetomys subspinosus (Olfers, 1818) (Hystricognathi, Rodentia) and its taxonomic implications". Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde. 65: 187–190.
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19. ^ Loss, Ana; Moura, Raquel T.; Leite, Yuri L. R. (2014). "Unexpected phylogenetic relationships of the painted tree rat Callistomys pictus (Rodentia: Echimyidae)" (PDF). Natureza on Line. 12: 132–136.
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21. ^ Upham, Nathan S.; Patterson, Bruce D. (2015). "Evolution of Caviomorph rodents: a complete phylogeny and timetree for living genera". In Vassallo, Aldo Ivan; Antenucci, Daniel (eds.). Biology of caviomorph rodents: diversity and evolution. Buenos Aires: SAREM Series A, Mammalogical Research — Sociedad Argentina para el Estudio de los Mamíferos. pp. 63–120.
22. ^ Courcelle, Maxime; Tilak, Marie-Ka; Leite, Yuri L. R. (2019). "Digging for the spiny rat and hutia phylogeny using a gene capture approach, with the description of a new mammal subfamily". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 136: 241–253.