Geographic Variation in Cranial Morphology of the Southern Mountain Cavy, Microcavia australis (Rodentia, Caviidae): Taxonomic Implications, with the Description of a New Species Pablo Teta1,*, Ricardo A. Ojeda2, Sergio O. Lucero1,

TETA PABLO; RICARDO A. OJEDA ; SERGIO O. LUCERO; GUILLERMO DELÍA

ZOOLOGICAL STUDIES

ACAD SINICA INST ZOOLOGY

Lugar: Taiwan; Año: 2017

1021-5506

We analyzed the geographicvariation in cranial morphology of the Southern Mountain Cavy, Microcavia australis, throughout of itsdistributional range. Our analysis allows us to recognize three geographically allopatric morphotypes. Thesemorphotypes differ in the general size and shape of the skull and discrete morphological traits of the zygomaticarch, palate and mesopterygoid fossa. Based on these results, we restrict the name australis to populationsdistributed in southern Argentina and west-central Andes and the name maenas to the morphotype ofnorthwestern and central