Geographic Range
Marmosa rubra
is an Amazonian species that occurs in southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, and
eastern Peru.
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
The natural habitat throughout the known distribution of this species is lowland or
premontane tropical rainforest. Specimens have been collected from 180 to 730 m above
sea level.
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- rainforest
Physical Description
Like other species of mouse opossums,
Marmosa rubra
is a small, pouchless marsupial with large, membranous ears; prominent eyes; a mask
of dark fur surrounding the eyes, and a long, slender, prehensile tail. The dorsal
fur is reddish brown and the ventral fur is orangish. Among other diagnostic traits,
this species differs from other species of
Marmosa
by lacking distinct postorbital processes, lacking palatine fenestrae, and lacking
a gular gland. Because the species is seldom collected, sample sizes for measurements
and weights are small, so the maximum and minimum values provided are unlikely to
represent the full range of adult variability. It is not known if this species exhibits
sexual size dimorphism or not.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- homoiothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Reproduction
Nothing is known about the mating system of this species.
Very little is known about reproduction in
Marmosa rubra
, but other species of
Marmosa
are spontaneous ovulators that give birth to very altricial young after a short gestation.
Females have seven to nine mammae, so litters are likely to consist of nine or fewer
young.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
Nothing is known about parental investment in this species, but female opossums of other species nurse their young, protect them from predators, and groom them before they are weaned.
- Parental Investment
- altricial
- female parental care
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
Nothing is known about the longevity of this species in the wild or in captivity.
Behavior
Nothing is known about the behavior of this species, but other species of
Marmosa
are known to be arboreal/scansorial, solitary, and nocturnal.
Home Range
No published data on home range of this species exist.
Communication and Perception
The eyes, ears, nasal turbinates (thin bones that support olfactory epithelium), and
tactile hairs are well developed in this species (as in other
opossums
), so vision, hearing, and touch are probably important senses. Unlike other species
of
Marmosa
,
M. rubra
is not known to have cutaneous glands that might be used for scent marking.
Food Habits
The dentition of this species resembles that of other closely related opossums known to eat insects and fruit.
- Primary Diet
- carnivore
- Animal Foods
- insects
- Plant Foods
- fruit
Predation
Nothing seems to be known about the natural predators of this species, but they probably
include
snakes
,
owls
, and wild
felids
.
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Marmosa rubra is probably a primary consumer (of fruit) and a secondary consumer (of insects). It is probably eaten by snakes , owls , and carnivorans ; and it is certainly host to many species of invertebrate ecto- and endo-parasites. Probable ectoparasites include species of Arachnida ( Acari : mites) and Insecta ( Siphonaptera : fleas). Probable endoparasites include species of Acanthocephala (spiny-headed worms), Cestoda (tapeworms), Digenea (flukes), and Nematoda (roundworms).
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
It is unlikely that this species is of any positive economic importance.
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known adverse effects of Marmosa rubra on humans.
Conservation Status
Marmosa rubra
is very widely distributed in a region that is still largely undeveloped.
Other Comments
Maximum-likelihood analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequence data suggest that
Marmosa rubra
is the sister taxon of a group of species that includes
M. simonsi
,
M. xerophila
,
M. robinsoni
,
M. isthmica
,
M. zeledoni
, and
M. mexicana
. Virtually nothing is known about its natural history.
Additional Links
Contributors
Robert Voss (author), American Museum of Natural History, Sharon Jansa (editor), American Museum of Natural History, Alexa Unruh (editor), Animal Diversity Web Staff.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- altricial
-
young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching.
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- solitary
-
lives alone
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
References
Gutierrez, E., S. Jansa, R. Voss. 2010. Molecular systematics of mouse opossums (Didelphidae: Marmosa ): assessing species limits using mitochondrial DNA sequences, with comments on phylogenetic relationships and biogeography. American Museum Novitates , 3692: 1-22.
Rossi, R., R. Voss, D. Lunde. 2010. A revision of the didelphid marsupial genus Marmosa . Part 1. The species in Tate's ' mexicana ' and ' mitis ' sections and other closely related forms. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History , 334: 1-81.
Tate, G. 1933. A systematic revision of the marsupial genus Marmosa . Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History , 66: 1-250.