rodent - Size and range of order, Classification

A mammal of worldwide order Rodentia (3 suborders, 30 families, 1702 species); successful in most environments; 40% of all living mammal species are rodents; eats a wide range of food; chisel-like upper and lower incisor teeth grow continuously, kept short by gnawing; suborders are Myomorpha (mouse-like rodents, 1137 species), Sciuromorpha (squirrel-like rodents, 377 species), and Hystricomorpha (porcupine-like rodents, 188 species, sometimes called Caviomorpha or cavy-like rodents).

iRodents Fossil range: Late Paleocene - Recent
Ammospermophilus leucurus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Subclass: Eutheria (unranked) Euarchontoglires Superorder: Glires Order: Rodentia Bowdich, 1821
Suborders
Sciuromorpha Castorimorpha Myomorpha Anomaluromorpha Hystricomorpha

Rodentia is an order of mammals (Mammalia).

Size and range of order

In terms of number of species — although not necessarily in terms of number of organisms (population) or biomass — rodents make up the largest order of mammals, with over 40 percent of mammalian species belonging to the order. mice headed south and porcupines headed north.

Some Prehistoric Rodents Castoroides, a giant beaver Ceratogaulus, a horned burrowing rodent Flores Giant Rat, a rat that grew to a large size on the island of Flores Giant hutias, a group of rodents once found in the West Indies Ischyromys, a primitive squirrel-like rodent Leithia, a giant dormouse Neochoerus pinckneyi, a giant North American capybara that weighed 50 kg Phoberomys pattersoni, the largest known rodent Telicomys, a giant South American rodent

Classification

The rodents are part of the clades: Glires (along with lagomorphs), Euarchontoglires (along with lagomorphs, primates, treeshrews, and colugos), and Boreoeutheria (along with most other placental mammals).

Classification scheme:

ORDER RODENTIA (from Latin, rodere, to gnaw)

Suborder Sciuromorpha Family Aplodontiidae: mountain beaver Family Sciuridae: squirrels, including chipmunks & prairie dogs Family Gliridae (also Myoxidae, Muscardinidae): dormice Suborder Castorimorpha Superfamily Castoroidea Family Castoridae: beavers Superfamily Geomyoidea Family Heteromyidae: kangaroo rats and kangaroo mice Family Geomyidae: pocket gophers (true gophers) Suborder Myomorpha Superfamily Dipodoidea Family Dipodidae: jerboas and jumping mice Superfamily Muroidea Family Platacanthomyidae: spiny dormice Family Spalacidae: mole rats, bamboo rats, and zokors Family Calomyscidae: mouse-like hamsters Family Nesomyidae: climbing mice, rock mice, white-tailed rat, Malagasy rats and mice Family Cricetidae: hamsters, New World rats and mice, voles Family Muridae: true mice and rats, gerbils, spiny mice, crested rat Suborder Anomaluromorpha Family Anomaluridae: scaly-tailed squirrels Family Pedetidae: springhares Suborder Hystricomorpha Family incertae sedis Diatomyidae: Laotian rock rat Infraorder Ctenodactylomorphi Family Ctenodactylidae: gundis Infraorder Hystricognathi Family Hystricidae: Old World porcupines Family Erethizontidae: New World porcupines Family Thryonomyidae: cane rats Family Petromuridae: dassie rat Family Bathyergidae: African mole rats Parvorder Caviomorpha Family Octodontidae: octodonts Family Echimyidae: spiny rats Family Capromyidae: hutias Family †Heptaxodontidae: giant hutias Family Myocastoridae: nutria Family Dasyproctidae: agoutis Family Dinomyidae: pacaranas Family Caviidae: cavies, including guinea pigs Family Hydrochoeridae: Capybara Family Chinchillidae: chinchillas and viscachas Family Abrocomidae: chinchilla rats Family Ctenomyidae: tuco-tucos

Alternate classifications

The above taxonomy uses the shape of the lower jaw (sciurognath or hystricognath) as the primary character.