Atelerix
Genus of mammals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Atelerix is a genus of hedgehog in the family Erinaceidae. It contains four species, all native to Africa.[1]
| Atelerix[1] | |
|---|---|
| |
| A. albiventris | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Eulipotyphla |
| Family: | Erinaceidae |
| Subfamily: | Erinaceinae |
| Genus: | Atelerix Pomel, 1848 |
| Type species | |
| Erinaceus albiventris Wagner, 1841 | |
| Species | |
Species
| Common name | Scientific name and subspecies | Range | Size and ecology | IUCN status and estimated population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Four-toed hedgehog
|
Atelerix albiventris (Wagner, 1841) |
Gambia and Senegal in the west, to Somalia in the east, and also in eastern Africa, as far south as Mozambique |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| North African hedgehog
|
Atelerix algirus Lereboullet, 1842 |
Algeria, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Spain, and Tunisia |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Southern African hedgehog
|
Atelerix frontalis (A. Smith, 1831) |
Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Somali hedgehog
|
Atelerix sclateri Anderson, 1895 |
Somalia. |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
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The Atelerix diversified from its family because of geographical isolation during Pleistocene climate changes. This being a type of vicariance separation from the Niger River. This allowed the Erinaceidane family to be more diverse.
