{{Short description|Species of mammal}} {{speciesbox | name = Natal multimammate mouse | image = Mastomys natalensis.jpg | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | genus = Mastomys | species = natalensis | authority = Smith, 1834 | synonyms = {{Specieslist |Mastomys hildebrandtii|(Peters, 1878) |Myomys fumatus|(Peters, 1878) }} }}
The '''Natal multimammate mouse''' ('''''Mastomys natalensis''''') is a species of [[rodent]] in the family [[Muridae]]. It is also known as the '''Natal multimammate rat''', the common [[Africa]]n rat, '''African soft fur rat''' or the '''African soft-furred mouse'''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/jean.wright93/mm/mm.htm |title=Multimammate Mice |access-date=2009-07-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207142116/http://homepage.ntlworld.com/jean.wright93/mm/mm.htm |archive-date=2009-02-07 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Natal multimammate rat is the natural host of the [[Lassa fever virus]].
==Range== It is found in [[Sub-Saharan Africa|Africa south of the Sahara]]. Six different genetic groups can be distinguished in different regions: one in western Africa, one in central Africa, one in southern Africa and three in eastern Africa.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Colangelo |first1=Paolo |title=A mitochondrial phylogeographic scenario for the most widespread African rodent, Mastomys natalensis |journal=Biological Journal of the Linnean Society |date=2013 |volume=108 |issue=4 |pages=901–916 |doi=10.1111/bij.12013 |doi-access=free }}</ref> [[File:Mastomys natalensis mammary.jpg|left|thumb|''Mastomys natalensis'' is commonly known as the “multimammate rat” due to the female’s multiple and prominent mammary glands]]
==Habitat== Its natural [[habitat]]s include [[subtropical or tropical dry forest]], [[subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest]], dry [[savanna]], moist savanna, subtropical or tropical dry [[shrubland]], [[subtropical or tropical moist shrubland]], [[arable land]], pastureland, rural gardens, [[urban area]]s, irrigated land, and seasonally flooded agricultural land.
These rats are closely associated with humans, and are commonly found in and around African villages.
==Interactions with humans== The species has been used as a [[laboratory animal]] since 1939. It has great value for researchers studying stomach cancer and spontaneous tumors. It is also the most important reservoir of the [[Lassa fever virus]].<ref>Clive Roots; ''Domestication'' - page: 115</ref> It is also bred domestically as food for various pet snake species such as [[ball pythons]] and [[boa constrictors]]. <ref>{{cite web |last1=D'Avignon |first1=Nicole |title=Diversifying Snake Diets |url=https://bewildnc.org/diversifying-snake-diets |website=bewildnc |access-date=12 April 2025 |date=February 17, 2022}}</ref> Additionally, it is occasionally kept as a pet. <ref>{{cite web |last1=Murray |first1=Janet |title=African Soft Fur Rats: Do They Make Good Pets? |url=https://a-z-animals.com/blog/african-soft-fur-rats-do-they-make-good-pets/ |website=AZ Animals |access-date=12 April 2025 |language=English |date=August 31, 2022}}</ref> ==References==<!-- BelgJZool135:11. --> {{Reflist}}
==External links== * Granjon, L., Lavrenchenko, L., Corti, M., Coetzee, N. & Rahman, E.A. 2004. [http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/12868/all Mastomys natalensis]. [http://www.iucnredlist.org 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. ] Downloaded on 9 July 2007. *{{MSW3 Muroidea | id = 13001472 | page = 1365}} *Tofts, Russell. [https://web.archive.org/web/20090207142116/http://homepage.ntlworld.com/jean.wright93/mm/mm.htm Multimammate Mice]. Retrieved July 14, 2009. {{Murinae (Stenocephalomys–Xeromys)}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1761383}}
[[Category:Mastomys]] [[Category:Rodents of Africa]] [[Category:Stored-product pests]] [[Category:Mammals described in 1834]] [[Category:Taxonomy articles created by Polbot]] [[Category:Rodents as pets]]