Abstract
Mole-rats from Karonga, Malawi, the type locality ofCryptomys hottentotus whytei, and a single female mole-rat from the Malawian Nyika Plateau exhibit a karyotype 2n = 4 6 chromosomes, wit h 1 5 metacentr ic an d 8 acrocentr ic chromosome, s ie NF (female) = 76. This trait, together with several morphological features and a previously published genetic analysis (Ingramet al. 2004), identifies this species as a good species, unrelated toCryptomys hottentotus of South Africa, which belongs to the Zambezian clade of the genusCryptomys sensu lato (cf Ingramet al. 2004) and should be therefore called Whyte’s mole-rat,Cryptomys whytei. Available data on ecology and reproductive biology sugges t simila r characteristic s a s i n othe r mole-rat s o f th e genu.s Unexpecte d findin g of lar ge complicat ed undergroun d burro w system s contrasted, howev,e r wi th ve ry f ew abo ve grou nd moun.d s
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Associate Editor was Andrzej Zalewski.
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Burda, H., šumbera, R., Chitaukali, W.N. et al. Taxonomic status and remarks on ecology of the Malawian mole-ratCryptomys whytei (Rodentia, Bathyergidae). Acta Theriol 50, 529–536 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03192646
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03192646