Marmosa

Marmosa
Robinson's mouse opossum (Marmosa robinsoni)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Marsupialia
Order: Didelphimorphia
Family: Didelphidae
Subfamily: Didelphinae
Tribe: Marmosini
Genus: Marmosa
J. E. Gray, 1821
Type species
Didelphis marina
J. E. Gray, 1821
(incorrect spelling of Didelphis murina Linnaeus, 1758)
Subgenera
  • Eomarmosa
  • Exulomarmosa
  • Marmosa
  • Micoureus
  • Stegomarmosa

The 29 species in the genus Marmosa are relatively small Neotropical members of the family Didelphidae.[1] This genus is one of three that are known as mouse opossums. The others are Thylamys (the "fat-tailed mouse opossums") and Tlacuatzin, the grayish mouse opossum. Members of the genus Marmosops used to be called "slender mouse opossums", but are now just called "slender opossums". The thirteen members of the Marmosa subgenus Micoureus, known as woolly mouse opossums, were formerly considered to be a separate genus,[2] but were moved into Marmosa in 2009.[3][4] Based on a comparison of sequences of one mitochondrial and three nuclear genes, three new subgenera, Eomarmosa, Exulomarmosa and Stegomarmosa, were recognized by Voss et al. in 2014.[4] Eomarmosa and Exulomarmosa, as well as Marmosa and Micoureus, are thought to be sister taxa, while Stegomarmosa is viewed as sister to Marmosa plus Micoureus. Exulomarmosa is a mostly trans-Andean (west of the Andes) clade.[4]

Phylogeny

According to Pavan et al (2025), the relations of Marmosa are as follows:[5]

Marmosa
Eomarmosa

M. rubra

Exulomarmosa

M. simonsi

M. robinsoni

M. xerophila

M. isthmica

M. mexicana

M. zeledoni

Stegomarmosa

M. andersoni

M. chachapoya

M. lepida

Marmosa

M. tyleriana

M. waterhousei

M. murina

M. macrotarsus

Micoureus

M. rapposa

M. parda

M. rutteri

M. germana

M. nicaraguae

M. adleri

M. alstoni

M. paraguayana

M. perplexa

M. jansae

M. cf. meridae

M. cf. phaea

M. constantiae

M. demerarae

Species list

Subgenus Eomarmosa Voss, Gutierrez, Solari, Rossi & Jansa 2014

  • Marmosa rubra Tate, 1931

Subgenus Exulomarmosa Voss, Gutierrez, Solari, Rossi & Jansa 2014

Subgenus Marmosa J. E. Gray 1821

Subgenus Micoureus Lesson 1842

  • Marmosa adleri[6] Voss, Giarla, & Jansa, 2021
  • Marmosa alstoni (J. A. Allen, 1900)
  • Marmosa constantiae Thomas, 1900
  • Marmosa demerarae Thomas, 1905
  • Marmosa germana Thomas, 1904
  • Marmosa jansae Voss & Giarla, 2021
  • Marmosa limae Thomas, 1920
  • Marmosa meridae Tate, 1931
  • Marmosa nicaraguae Thomas, 1905
  • Marmosa paraguayana Tate, 1931
  • Marmosa parda Tate, 1931
  • Marmosa perplexa Anthony, 1922
  • Marmosa phaea Thomas, 1899
  • Marmosa rapposa Thomas, 1899
  • Marmosa rutteri Thomas, 1924

Subgenus Stegomarmosa Pine, 1972

  • Marmosa andersoni Pine, 1972
  • Marmosa chachapoya Pavan, Abreu, Sánchez-Vendizú and Voss, 2025
  • Marmosa lepida (Thomas, 1888)

References

  1. ^ Gutiérrez, EE; Jansa, SA; Voss, RS (2010). "Molecular systematics of mouse opossums (Didelphidae: Marmosa): assessing species limits using mitochondrial DNA sequences, with comments on phylogenetic relationships and biogeography" (PDF). American Museum Novitates (3692): 1–22. doi:10.1206/708.1. hdl:2246/6076. S2CID 52085421.
  2. ^ Gardner, A.L. (2005). "Order Didelphimorphia". In Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 3–18. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  3. ^ Voss, R. S.; Jansa, S. A. (2009). "Phylogenetic relationships and classification of didelphid marsupials, an extant radiation of New World metatherian mammals". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 322: 1–177. doi:10.1206/322.1. hdl:2246/5975. S2CID 85017821.
  4. ^ a b c Voss, Robert S; Gutiérrez, Eliécer E; Solari, Sergio; Rossi, Rogerio V; Jansa, Sharon A (2014). "Phylogenetic relationships of mouse opossums (Didelphidae, Marmosa) with a revised subgeneric classification and notes on sympatric diversity". American Museum Novitates (3817): 1–27. doi:10.1206/3817.1. hdl:2246/6556. S2CID 52082932.
  5. ^ Pavan, Silvia E.; Abreu, Edson F.; Sánchez-Vendizú, Pamela Y.; Voss, Robert S. (19 June 2025). "A New Species of Marmosa (Mammalia: Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) from Parque Nacional del Río Abiseo, Peru". American Museum Novitates. 2025 (4037): 1–20. doi:10.1206/4037.1.
  6. ^ "A revision of the didelphid marsupial genus Marmosa". digitallibrary.amnh.org. 8 December 2021. hdl:2246/7287.