Père David's vole (Eothenomys melanogaster) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae.
It is found in China, Myanmar, Taiwan, India, Vietnam, and Thailand. This species is a member of the melanogaster group, one of the two main groups of Eothenomys voles. Its dorsal pelage is dark brown, often nearly black, and the ventral pelage is gray, sometimes brown. The tail is shorter than the body. This species is found in pine/rhododendron forests.
Recent studies have split this species into three: E. melanogaster, E. colurnus, and E. eleusis. If recognized as distinct, E. colurnus would found in eastern China and Taiwan, E. eleusis would be in southern China and the bordering Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and India, and E. melanogastersensu stricto would be restricted to mountains of the Sichuan Basin north of the Yangtze River in central China.[2]
^Kryštufek, Boris; Shenbrot, Georgy I. (July 2022). Voles and Lemmings (Arvicolinae) of the Palaerctic Region (1 ed.). Maribor, Slovenia: University of Maribor Press. pp. 120–130. ISBN978-961-286-611-2.
Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
Smith, A.T and Xie, Y. 2008. A guide to the mammals of China. Princeton University Press, New Jersey.
