{{Short description|Species of marsupial}} {{Speciesbox | name = Rufous mouse opossum<ref name=MSW3>{{MSW3 Gardner|pages=9}}</ref> | image = Catalogue of the Marsupialia and Monotremata in the collection of the British Museum (Natural History) (1888) (20772821205).jpg | image_caption = Rufous mouse opossum (above) and long-nosed short-tailed opossum (below) | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn">{{cite iucn |author=Cáceres, N. |author2=Solari, S. |author3=Tarifa, T. |date=2016 |title=''Marmosa lepida'' |volume=2016 |article-number=e.T12814A22173952 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T12814A22173952.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref> | genus = Marmosa | parent = Marmosa (Stegomarmosa) | species = lepida | authority = (Thomas, 1888) | range_map = Little Rufous Mouse Opossum area.png | range_map_caption = Rufous mouse opossum range }}

The '''rufous mouse opossum''' ('''''Marmosa lepida''''') or '''little rufous mouse opossum'''<ref name="iucn" /> is an opossum species from South America. The species has been found in Bolivia, French Guinea, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Suriname in lowland tropical rainforest at altitudes from {{cvt|100 to 1000|m}}.<ref name="iucn" /> It is presumed to feed on insects and fruit, like its close relatives.<ref name="iucn" />

It is considered a monotype. It is smaller in size and has a brighter red colored fur, distinguishing it from other congeners.<ref name=gardner>{{cite book |last1=Gardner |first1=Alfred |title=Mammals of South America Volume 1 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |page=55}}</ref>

Though the species has been known for over a century, very few specimens have been studied, most of these from areas below {{cvt|600|m}} and taken from western edges of the Amazon basin and Guianas. Its dorsal pelage is reddish-brown and its ventral pelage is grayish. Researchers believe this coloring is product of adaptation to a humid forest environment.<ref name=gardner />

Potential predators of this opossum include snakes, owls, and wild felids.<ref>Marmosa lepida (little rufous mouse opossum). Animal Diversity Web. https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Marmosa_lepida/</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{Didelphimorphia|D.}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q194894}}

Category:Opossums Category:Marsupials of Bolivia Category:Marsupials of Brazil Category:Marsupials of Colombia Category:Marsupials of Ecuador Category:Mammals of French Guiana Category:Mammals of Guyana Category:Marsupials of Peru Category:Mammals of Suriname Category:Fauna of the Amazon Category:Mammals described in 1888 Category:Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas

{{marsupial-stub}}