Marmosops incanus
SUBFAMILY
Didelphinae
TAXONOMY
Didelphis incana (Lund, 1840), Minas Gerais, Brazil.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
None known.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Length 4.7–7.9 in (12–20 cm); weight 1–1.9 oz (30–55 g). Dorsal fur is grayish brown to brown and underparts paler. The snout is long and pointed and the ears are large, naked, and pink to brown. There is a patch of black hair around each eye. The tail is long and naked.
DISTRIBUTION
Endemic to eastern Brazil from the state of Bahia to Parana.
HABITAT
Found in the Atlantic forest of the southeastern coast of Brazil, below 2,640 ft (800 m), in tropical moist forest and deeper inland in somewhat drier forest.
BEHAVIOR
Nocturnal and crepuscular. Solitary.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Feeds on insects, eggs, fruit, and small vertebrates.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Polygamous. A semelparous species in which individuals invest all their effort on a single reproductive event in their lives. Typically, the births occur in a single three-month period around the onset of the rainy season.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Considered Lower Risk/Near Threatened by the IUCN. The Atlantic forest of Brazil is one of the most endangered biomes of South America and, if deforestation trends continue, this and other species will face very serious extinction risks.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.
