Microbiotheria

Monito del Monte[1]
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN) [2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Infraclass: Marsupialia Order: Microbiotheria Family: Microbiotheriidae Genus: Dromiciops Thomas, 1894 Species: D. gliroides
Binomial name
Dromiciops gliroides Thomas, 1894
Synonyms
Dromiciops australis

The Monito del Monte ("little forest monkey", Dromiciops gliroides) is a semi-arboreal South American marsupial which is thought to be more closely related to the marsupials of Australasia than to those of the Americas. Many scientists believe that marsupials traveled from South America to Australia via Antarctica, where fossils of marsupials have been found. The existence of the Monito del Monte in South America suggests that some marsupials reached South America from Australia, as did a monotreme (Monotrematum), fossils of which have been found in Argentina.

Also known as the Colocolo or Chimaihuén, it is only a little larger than a mouse: about 8 to 13 cm long with a thick-based, moderately prehensile tail about the same length again. Weight varies between 17 and 31 grams. It has a coat of short, dense, silky fur, brown on the upper side with a number of ashy white patches, and paler underneath. The ears are short and rounded, and there are black rings around the eyes.

Monitos del Monte are found only in the mountains of Chile and Argentina, preferring dense, humid forests, particularly where there are areas of Chilean bamboo. It is reported to be reasonably common within its restricted range. Pairs make nests of leaves and sticks, about 20 cm in diameter and lined with grass or moss, in a variety of places: under rocks, in hollow trees, on branches, or suspended in thick shrubbery.

Monitos del Monte are largely carnivorous. Most of their diet is insects and other small invertebrates, although they may also take some fruit. They are nocturnal, and excellent climbers with both feet and tail, but equally at home on the ground. They have an extraordinary ability to rapidly accumulate a reserve of fat in the tail, being able to double their body weight within a week. This reserve is enough to sustain them through periods of cold weather, during which they hibernate.

Mating takes place in the spring and early summer, and results in a litter of between one and five young, which are carried in the well-developed pouch. Sexual maturity is reached in the second year.

There are a number of superstitions concerning the Monito del Monte. Some think that it has a venomous bite that induces convulsions, while others have been known to burn down their homes if they see a Monito del Monte inside.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ Gardner, Alfred (November 16, 2005). in Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 21. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. 
2. ^ New World Marsupial Specialist Group (1996). Dromiciops gliroides. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Listed as Vulnerable (VU A1c v2.3)

External links

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