Alticola
| Mountain voles Temporal range: Pleistocene to Recent | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Alticola stoliczkanus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Cricetidae |
| Subfamily: | Arvicolinae |
| Tribe: | Clethrionomyini |
| Genus: | Alticola Blanford, 1881 |
| Type species | |
| Arvicola stoliczkanus Blanford, 1875 | |
| Species | |
|
See article text | |
Alticola, also known as the mountain vole, is a genus of rodent in the family Cricetidae. Their fur is pale ash-brown. They prefer environments of high elevation (often in remote and extreme habitats). They are widely distributed across the mountains of Central Asia, and are found in steppe, rocky montane, and alpine forests.
They are one of the least known groups of voles in evolutionary and life history.
Taxonomy
They appear to be a sister genus to the red-backed voles of genera Clethrionomys and Craseomys, based on morphological similarities. However, molecular analysis is unstable to confirm this, due to incomplete sampling of specimens and the uncertain taxonomic placement of the genera Craseomys and Phaulomys. Phaulomys is a junior synonym of Craseomys, with Alticola and Myodes (the former genus for the red-backed voles) being separate genera. It is also closely related to Eothenomys.
Species
The following species are assigned to the genus:
- Subgenus Alticola
- White-tailed mountain vole, A. albicauda
- Silver mountain vole, A. argentatus
- Gobi Altai mountain vole, A. barakshin
- Alticola kohistanicus
- Central Kashmir vole, A. montosus
- Lake Baikal mountain vole, A. olchonensis
- Alticola parvidens
- Royle's mountain vole, A. roylei
- Mongolian silver vole, A. semicanus
- Stolička's mountain vole, A. stoliczkanus
- Flat-headed vole, A. strelzovi
- Tuva silver vole, A. tuvinicus
- Alticola yarlungius
- Subgenus Aschizomys
- Lemming vole, A. lemminus
- Large-eared vole, A. macrotis
References
- ↑ Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M., eds. (2005). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
- ↑ Tang, Ming Kun; Qiu, Hong; Peng, Bu Qing; Liao, Rui; Murphy, Robert W.; Wang, Xu Ming; Pan, Xuan; Wang, Xin; Liu, Shao Ying (2025-12-03). "A new species of Alticola (Mammalia, Rodentia, Arvicolinae) from southern Tibet, China". Zoosystematics and Evolution. 101 (4): 2387–2403. doi:10.3897/zse.101.170704. ISSN 1860-0743.
- 1 2 Tang, Ming Kun; Jin, Wei; Tang, Ying; Yan, Chao Chao; Murphy, Robert W.; Sun, Zhi Yu; Zhang, Xiu Yue; Zeng, Tao; Liao, Rui; Hou, Quan Fen; Yue, Bi Song; Liu, Shao Ying (2018). "Reassessment of the taxonomic status of Craseomys and three controversial species of Myodes and Alticola (Rodentia: Arvicolinae)". Zootaxa. 4429 (1): 1–52. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4429.1.1. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 30313278.
- 1 2 "Cricetidae". ASM Mammal Diversity Database. American Society of Mammalogists. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
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