Canariomys

Canariomys
Temporal range: Pleistocene to Holocene
Skull of Tenerife giant rat at Museo de la Naturaleza y el Hombre
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Tribe: Arvicanthini
Genus: Canariomys
Crusafont-Pairó & Petter, 1964 / Lopez-Martinez & López-Jurado, L. F. (1987)
Species

Canariomys is an extinct genus of rodents (Old World rats and mice) that once existed on the islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria, part of the Canary Islands, Spain. These giant rats could reach a weight of about 1 kg (2.2 lb). They were herbivores; their diet was based on plant materials, probably soft vegetables such as roots, ferns, and berries, but not grass. C. tamarani were considered herbivores, eating everything plant-like except grass with good digging skills. While C. bravoi were considered as a rat character, because of its large size, with an omnivorous diet with good climbing skills. They were one of two groups of rodents native to the archipelago, alongside the lava mouse (Malpaisomys insularis), which was native to Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.