Microtus xanthognathus
| Taiga Vole
(Microtus xanthognathus) | |
|---|---|
| Range | |
 | |
| Taxonomic classification | |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Suborder: | Supramyomorpha |
| Infraorder: | Myomorphi |
| Superfamily: | Muroidea |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Arvicolinae |
| Tribe: | Arvicolini |
| Genus: | Microtus |
| Subgenus: | Mynomes |
| Binomial details | |
| Microtus xanthognathus (Leach, 1815) | |
| Other resources | |
| Full taxonomic details at MDD | |
The Taiga Vole (Microtus xanthognathus) is a large, dark brownish vole with a conspicuous rusty-yellowish color around the whisker area. It is found in Alaska and Canada.
Description
From Conroy & Cook (1999): "Microtus xanthognathus is one of the largest species in the genus Microtus, and adults have a conspicuous rusty-yellowish color about the whisker area... In color, upper parts are dark sepia to bister and heavily lined with coarse black hairs on back. Sides of nose and ear patch are bright rusty yellowish. Venter is dusky gray. Tail is indistinctly bicolored: blackish above, dusky gray below. Body is 3.2-3.8 times as long as tail. Tail is 1.8-1.9 times as long as hind foot (Hall, 1981). Flank glands are elliptical and their size is a function of body mass (Wolff and Lidicker, 1980)."
External measurements
Length measurements are in millimeters (mm) and weight measurements are in grams (g), unless stated otherwise. If available, the sample size (n=) is provided. If a range is not provided and n= is not given, then the listed measurement represents an average.
| Part of range | Reference | Total length | Tail length | Hindfoot length | Ear length | Mass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | Naughton (2012) | 183–209 (n=46) | 35–50 (n=46) | 16–27 (n=46) | 17–21 (n=23) | 82.2–119.5 (n=45) |
Skull
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UAM:Mamm:79250. Lateral view of the skull of Microtus xanthognathus. -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Dorsal view of the skull of Microtus xanthognathus. The upper incisors protrude slightly beyond the nasal bones when viewed from above (Naughton, 2012). -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Ventral view of the skull of Microtus xanthognathus. -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Lower jaw of Microtus xanthognathus. -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Upper incisors of Microtus xanthognathus. -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Upper molars of Microtus xanthognathus. -
UAM:Mamm:79250. Lower molars of Microtus xanthognathus.
Similar species
From Conroy & Cook (1999): "Taiga voles are generally larger than other North American voles of the genus Microtus. M. xanthognathus and M. chrotorrhinus are similar in color but the former is much larger. Flank glands are present as with other species in North America (e.g., M. richardsoni, M. abbreviatus, and M. chrotorrhinus) but distinguish M. xanthognathus from species with hip glands (e.g., M. pinetorum, M. californicus, M. montanus, [Alexandromys] oeconomus, and M. townsendii) as well as from species that apparently lack sebaceous glands (e.g., M. oregoni, M. umbrosus, M. longicaudus, M. mexicanus, and M. pennsylvanicus [and presumably M. drummondii]-Quay, 1968) . A lack of cementum from the posteriormost lateral reentrant angle of the M3 distinguishes M. xanthognathus from M. richardsoni and M. pennsylvanicus (Hallberg et al., 1974). M. xanthognathus has a shorter tail and larger ears than M. richardsoni (Bailey, 1900)."
References
Bailey V. 1900. Revision of American voles of the genus Microtus. North American Fauna 17:1-88.
Conroy CJ, Cook JA. 1999. Microtus xanthognathus. Mammalian Species (627): 1-5.
Hall ER. 1981. The mammals of North America. Second edition. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
Hallberg GR, Semken HA, Davis LC. 1974. Quaternary records of Microtus xanthognathus (Leach), the yellowcheeked vole, from northwestern Arkansas and southwestern Iowa. Journal of Mammalogy 55:640-645.
Quay WB. 1968. The specialized posterolateral sebaceous glandular regions in microtine rodents. Journal of Mammalogy 49:427-445.
Wolff J0, Lidicker Jr WZ. 1980. Population ecology of the taiga vole, Microtus xanthognathus, in interior Alaska. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 58:1800-1812.