This is a list of the mammal species recorded in the Dominican Republic. Of the mammal species in the Dominican Republic, one is critically endangered, one is endangered, three are vulnerable, and ten are considered to be extinct.
The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature:
Order: Sirenia (manatees and dugongs)
Sirenia is an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit rivers, estuaries, coastal marine waters, swamps, and marine wetlands. All four species are threatened.
Order: Rodentia (rodents)
Rodents make up the largest order of mammals, with over 40% of mammalian species. They have two incisors in the upper and lower jaw which grow continually and must be kept short by gnawing. Most rodents are small though the capybara can weigh up to .
Order: Eulipotyphla (shrews, hedgehogs, moles, and solenodons)
Eulipotyphlans are insectivorous mammals. Shrews and solenodons closely resemble mice, hedgehogs carry spines, while moles are stout-bodied burrowers.
Order: lagomorpha (rabbits and hares)
Lagomorphs can be distinguish by their long ears.
The bats' most distinguishing feature is that their forelimbs are developed as wings, making them the only mammals capable of flight. Bat species account for about 20% of all mammals.
- Family: Vespertilionidae
- Genus: Eptesicus
- Big brown bat, E. fuscus
- Genus: Lasiurus
- Minor red bat, L. minor
- Family: Noctilionidae
- Genus: Noctilio
- Greater bulldog bat, N. leporinus
- Family: Molossidae
- Genus: Molossus
- Velvety free-tailed bat, M. molossus
- Genus: Nyctinomops
- Big free-tailed bat, N. macrotis
- Genus: Tadarida
- Mexican free-tailed bat, T. brasiliensis
- Family: Mormoopidae
- Genus: Mormoops
- Antillean ghost-faced bat, M. blainvillei
- Genus: Pteronotus
- Parnell's mustached bat, P. parnellii
- Sooty mustached bat, P. quadridens
- Family: Phyllostomidae
- Subfamily: Phyllostominae
- Genus: Macrotus
- Waterhouse's leaf-nosed bat, M. waterhousii
- Genus: Erophylla
- Brown flower bat, E. bombifrons
- Subfamily: Brachyphyllinae
- Genus: Brachyphylla
- Cuban fruit-eating bat, B. nana
- Subfamily: Phyllonycterinae
- Genus: Phyllonycteris
- Cuban flower bat, P. poeyi
- Subfamily: Glossophaginae
- Genus: Monophyllus
- Leach's single leaf bat, M. redmani
- Subfamily: Stenodermatinae
- Genus: Artibeus
- Jamaican fruit bat, A. jamaicensis
- Genus: Phyllops
- Cuban fig-eating bat, P. falcatus
- Family: Natalidae
- Genus: Chilonatalus
- Cuban funnel-eared bat, C. micropus
- Genus: Natalus
- Hispaniolan greater funnel-eared bat, N. major
Order: Cetacea (whales)
The order Cetacea includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. They are the mammals most fully adapted to aquatic life with a spindle-shaped nearly hairless body, protected by a thick layer of blubber, and forelimbs and tail modified to provide propulsion underwater.
- Suborder: Mysticeti
- Family: Balaenopteridae (baleen whales)
- Genus: Balaenoptera
- Common minke whale, B. acutorostrata
- Sei whale, B. borealis
- Bryde's whale, B. brydei
- Blue whale, B. musculus
- Fin whale, B. physalus
- Genus: Megaptera
- Humpback whale, M. novaeangliae
- Suborder: Odontoceti
- Superfamily: Platanistoidea
- Family: Delphinidae (marine dolphins)
- Genus: Delphinus
- Short-beaked common dolphin, D. delphis
- Genus: Feresa
- Pygmy killer whale, F. attenuata
- Genus: Globicephala
- Short-finned pilot whale, G. macrorhyncus
- Genus: Grampus
- Risso's dolphin, G. griseus
- Genus: Lagenodelphis
- Fraser's dolphin, L. hosei
- Genus: Orcinus
- Killer whale, O. orca
- Genus: Peponocephala
- Melon-headed whale, P. electra
- Genus: Pseudorca
- False killer whale, P. crassidens
- Genus: Stenella
- Pantropical spotted dolphin, S. attenuata
- Clymene dolphin, S. clymene
- Striped dolphin, S. coeruleoalba
- Atlantic spotted dolphin, S. frontalis
- Spinner dolphin, S. longirostris
- Genus: Steno
- Rough-toothed dolphin, S. bredanensis
- Genus: Tursiops
- Common bottlenose dolphin, T. truncatus
- Family: Physeteridae (sperm whales)
- Genus: Physeter
- Sperm whale, P. macrocephalus
- Family: Kogiidae (dwarf sperm whales)
- Genus: Kogia
- Pygmy sperm whale, K. breviceps
- Dwarf sperm whale, K. sima
- Superfamily Ziphioidea
- Family: Ziphidae (beaked whales)
- Genus: Mesoplodon
- Blainville's beaked whale, M. densirostris
- Gervais' beaked whale, M. europaeus
- Genus: Ziphius
- Cuvier's beaked whale, Z. cavirostris
Order: Carnivora (carnivorans)
There are over 260 species of carnivorans, the majority of which feed primarily on meat. They have a characteristic skull shape and dentition.
Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)
The even-toed ungulates are ungulates â hoofed animals â which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes: the third and fourth. The other three toes are either present, absent, vestigial, or pointing posteriorly.
Globally extinct
The following species are globally extinct:
- Hispaniolan edible rat, Brotomys voratus
- Wide-toothed hutia, Hyperplagiodontia araeum
- Samaná hutia, Plagiodontia ipnaeum
- Small Haitian hutia, Plagiodontia spelaeum
- Lemke's hutia, Rhizoplagiodontia lemkei
- Montane hutia, Isolobodon montanus
- Puerto Rican hutia, Isolobodon portoricensis
- Imposter hutia, Hexolobodon phenax
- Twisted-toothed mouse, Quemisia gravis
- Atalaye nesophontes, Nesophontes hypomicrus
- Western Cuban nesophontes, Nesophontes micrus
- St. Michel nesophontes, Nesophontes paramicrus
- Haitian nesophontes, Nesophontes zamicrus
- Marcano's solenodon, Solenodon marcanoi
- Hispaniola monkey, Antillothrix bernensis
- Caribbean monk seal, Neomonachus tropicalis
- Dominican flat-nosed sloth, Acratocnus simorhynchus
- Parocnus dominicanus
See also
Notes
References