Heterocephalus glaber
Rüppell, 1842
Common Naked Mole-rat
Distribution :
C Somalia, C and E Ethiopia, C and S Kenya
Image courtesy of the ASM Mammal Images Library · MIL ID: 674
Taxonomy
| Subclass | : Theria |
| Infraclass | : Placentalia |
| Magnorder | : Boreoeutheria |
| Superorder | : Euarchontoglires |
| Order | : Rodentia |
| Suborder | : Hystricomorpha |
| Infraorder | : Hystricognathi |
| Parvorder | : Phiomorpha |
| Family | : Heterocephalidae |
| Genus | : Heterocephalus |
Species status
Authority citation
Rüppell, E. 1842. Säugethiere aus der Ordnung der Nager, beobachtet im nordöstlichen Africa. Museum Senckenbergianum 3(2):91-116.
Authority publication link
Original name as described
Heterocephalus glaber
Other common names
Desert Mole Rat · Sand Puppy · Naked Mole Rat · Naked Mole-rat
Type material
SMF:MAMM:855
Type kind
holotype
Type locality
"Abyssinien und Schoa" (= Ethiopia and [central province of] Shewa).
Biogeographic realm
Afrotropic
Country distribution
Djibouti · Ethiopia · Kenya · Somalia
Taxonomy notes
previously included H. phillipsi; moved from Bathyergidae to the recently erected Heterocephalidae
Taxonomy notes citation
Patterson, B.D. and Upham, N.S. 2014. A newly recognized family from the Horn of Africa, the Heterocephalidae (Rodentia: Ctenohystrica). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 172(4):942-963. doi:10.1111/zoj.12201 · Zemlemerova, E.D., Kostin, D.S., Gromov, A.R., Martynov, A.A., Alexsandrov, D.Yu. and Lavrenchenko, L.A. 2020. Preliminary data on phylogeography of the naked mole-rat Heterocephalus glaber (Rodentia: Heterocephalidae). Russian Journal of Genetics 56(3):370-374. doi:10.1134/S1022795420030175 · Zemlemerova, E.D., Kostin, D.S., Lebedev, V.S., Martynov, A.A., Gromov, A.R., Alexandrov, D.Yu. and Lavrenchenko, L.A. 2021. Genetic diversity of the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber). Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 59(1):323-340. doi:10.1111/jzs.12423 · Uhrová, M., Mikula, O., Bryja, J., Frýdlová, P., Zemlemerova, E.D., Elmi, H.S.A., Štolhoferová, I., Tymlová, V., Maštera, V., Frynta, D., Lavrenchenko, L.A. and Šumbera, R. 2025. More than one species of the naked mole-rat, a new biomedical model. Communications Biology 9(1):70. doi:10.1038/s42003-025-09338-4
IUCN Red List status
Least Concern
Species Permalink
Country distribution map
The map below provides a general overview. Most species inhabit only specific regions within countries. Hover over the highlighted regions to see the country name.
Names and synonyms
Present and past (if available) associated names to the species. Click on a name to view its details.
Total: 7 names and synonyms.
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