Muridae is the largest family of mammals. It contains over 700 species found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. They have been introduced worldwide. The group includes true mice and rats, gerbils, and relatives.
The family name Muridae is sometimes used in a broader sense to include all members of the superfamily Muroidea. The name comes from the Latin mus (genitive muris), meaning "mouse".
The murids are small mammals, typicall...
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Muridae is the largest family of mammals. It contains over 700 species found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. They have been introduced worldwide. The group includes true mice and rats, gerbils, and relatives.
The family name Muridae is sometimes used in a broader sense to include all members of the superfamily Muroidea. The name comes from the Latin mus (genitive muris), meaning "mouse".
The murids are small mammals, typically around 10 cm (3.9 in) long excluding the tail, but ranging from 4.5 to 8 cm (1.8 to 3.1 in) in the African Pygmy Mouse to 48 cm (19 in) in Cuming's Slender-tailed Cloud Rat. They typically have a slender body with a scaled tail, and pointed snouts with prominent whiskers. However, within these broad traits, there is a wide degree of variation. Many murids have elongated legs and feet allowing them to move with a hopping motion, while others have broad feet and prehensile tails to improve their climbing ability, and yet others have neither...
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