Heather Vole

The genus Phenacomys is a group of North American voles. The genus name comes from the Greek for "imposter mouse."

These animals live in forested, alpine and tundra areas, which often include plants of the heath family. They are small rodents with long fur and short ears, legs and tails. They eat green plants, seeds and berries in summer and bark and buds of shrubs at other times. Predators include mustelids, owls and hawks.

Some sources include the tree voles, genus Arborimus, in this genus. At one time, the two species of heather vole were considered to be a single species.

The complete list of species is:

  • Western Heather Vole (Phenacomys intermedius)
  • Eastern Heather Vole (Phenacomys ungava)
Extant species of subfamily Arvicolinae
  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum: Chordata
  • Class: Mammalia
  • Infraclass: Eutheria
  • Superorder: Euarchontoglires
  • Order: Rodentia
  • Family: Cricetidae
Arvicolini
Arvicola
  • European Water Vole (A. amphibius)
  • Southwestern Water Vole (A. sapidus)
  • Montane Water Vole (A. scherman)
Blanfordimys
  • Afghan Vole (B. afghanus)
  • Bucharian Vole (B. bucharicus)
Chionomys
  • Caucasian Snow Vole (C. gud)
  • European Snow Vole (C. nivalis)
  • Robert's Snow Vole (C. roberti)
Lasiopodomys
  • Brandt's Vole (L. brandtii)
  • Plateau Vole (L. fuscus)
  • Mandarin Vole (L. mandarinus)
Lemmiscus
  • Sagebrush Vole (L. curtatus)
Microtus
  • Subgenus Microtus: Field Vole (M. agrestis)
  • Anatolian Vole (M. anatolicus)
  • Common Vole (M. arvalis)
  • Cabrera's Vole (M. cabrerae)
  • Doğramaci's Vole (M. dogramacii)
  • Günther's Vole (M. guentheri)
  • Tien Shan Vole (M. ilaeus)
  • Persian Vole (M. irani)
  • Southern Vole (M. levis)
  • Paradox Vole (M. paradoxus)
  • Qazvin Vole (M. qazvinensis)
  • Schidlovsky's Vole (M. schidlovskii)
  • Social Vole (M. socialis)
  • European Pine Vole (M. subterraneus)
  • Transcaspian Vole (M. transcaspicus)
  • Subgenus Terricola: Bavarian Pine Vole (M. bavaricus)
  • Calabria Pine Vole (M. brachycercus)
  • Daghestan Pine Vole (M. daghestanicus)
  • Mediterranean Pine Vole (M. duodecimcostatus)
  • Felten's Vole (M. felteni)
  • Liechtenstein's Pine Vole (M. liechtensteini)
  • Lusitanian Pine Vole (M. lusitanicus)
  • Major's Pine Vole (M. majori)
  • Alpine Pine Vole (M. multiplex)
  • Savi's Pine Vole (M. savii)
  • Tatra Pine Vole (M. tatricus)
  • Thomas's Pine Vole (M. thomasi)
  • Subgenus Mynomes: Beach Vole (M. breweri)
  • Gray-tailed Vole (M. canicaudus)
  • Montane Vole (M. montanus)
  • Creeping Vole (M. oregoni)
  • Meadow Vole (M. pennsylvanicus)
  • Townsend's Vole (M. townsendii)
  • Subgenus Alexandromys: Clarke's Vole (M. clarkei)
  • Evorsk Vole (M. evoronensis)
  • Reed Vole (M. fortis)
  • Gerbe's Vole (M. gerbei)
  • Taiwan Vole (M. kikuchii)
  • Lacustrine Vole (M. limnophilus)
  • Maximowicz's Vole (M. maximowiczii)
  • Middendorf's Vole (M. middendorffi)
  • Mongolian Vole (M. mongolicus)
  • Japanese Grass Vole (M. montebelli)
  • Muisk Vole (M. mujanensis)
  • Tundra Vole (M. oeconomus)
  • Sakhalin Vole (M. sachalinensis)
  • Subgenus Stenocranius: Narrow-headed Vole (M. gregalis)
  • Subgenus Pitymys: Guatemalan Vole (M. guatemalensis)
  • Tarabundí Vole (M. oaxacensis)
  • Woodland Vole (M. pinetorum)
  • Jalapan Pine Vole (M. quasiater)
  • Subgenus Pedomys: Prairie Vole (M. ochrogaster)
  • Subgenus Hyrcanicola: Schelkovnikov's Pine Vole (M. schelkovnikovi)
  • incertae sedis: Insular Vole (M. abbreviatus)
  • California Vole (M. californicus)
  • Rock Vole (M. chrotorrhinus)
  • Long-tailed Vole (M. longicaudus)
  • Mexican Vole (M. mexicanus)
  • Singing Vole (M. miurus)
  • Water Vole (M. richardsoni)
  • Zempoaltépec Vole (M. umbrosus)
  • Taiga Vole (M. xanthognathus)
Neodon
  • Juniper Vole (N. juldaschi)
  • Chinese Scrub Vole (N. irene)
  • Sikkim Mountain Vole (N. sikimensis)
  • Forrest's Mountain Vole (N. forresti)
Phaiomys
  • Blyth's Vole (P. leucurus)
Proedromys
  • Duke of Bedford's Vole (P. bedfordi)
  • P. liangshanensis
Volemys
  • Szechuan Vole (V. millicens)
  • Marie's Vole (V. musseri)
Dicrostonychini
Dicrostonyx
  • St. Lawrence Island Collared Lemming (D. exsul)
  • Northern Collared Lemming (D. groenlandicus)
  • Ungava Collared Lemming (D. hudsonius)
  • Victoria Collared Lemming (D. kilangmiutak)
  • Nelson's Collared Lemming (D. nelsoni)
  • Ogilvie Mountains Collared Lemming (D. nunatakensis)
  • Richardson's Collared Lemming (D. richardsoni)
  • Bering Collared Lemming (D. rubricatus)
  • Arctic Lemming (D. torquatus)
  • Unalaska Collared Lemming (D. unalascensis)
  • Wrangel Lemming (D. vinogradovi)
Ellobiusini
Ellobius
  • Alai Mole Vole (E. alaicus)
  • Southern Mole Vole (E. fuscocapillus)
  • Transcaucasian Mole Vole (E. lutescens)
  • Northern Mole Vole (E. talpinus)
  • Zaisan Mole Vole (E. tancrei)
Lagurini
Eolagurus
  • Yellow Steppe Lemming (E. luteus)
  • Przewalski's Steppe Lemming (E. przewalskii)
Lagurus
  • Steppe Lemming (L. lagurus)
Lemmini
Lemmus
  • Amur Lemming (L. amurensis)
  • Norway lemming (L. lemmus)
  • Siberian Brown Lemming (L. sibiricus)
  • North American Brown Lemming (L. trimucronatus)
  • Wrangel Island Lemming (L. portenkoi)
Myopus
  • Wood Lemming (M. schisticolor)
Synaptomys
  • Northern Bog Lemming (S. borealis)
  • Southern Bog Lemming (S. cooperi)
Myodini
Alticola
  • Subgenus Alticola: White-tailed Mountain Vole (A. albicauda)
  • Silver Mountain Vole (A. argentatus)
  • Gobi Altai Mountain Vole (A. barakshin)
  • Central Kashmir Vole (A. montosa)
  • Royle's Mountain Vole (A. roylei)
  • Mongolian Silver Vole (A. semicanus)
  • Stolička's Mountain Vole (A. stoliczkanus)
  • Tuva Silver Vole (A. tuvinicus)
  • Subgenus Aschizomys: Lemming Vole (A. lemminus)
  • Large-eared Vole (A. macrotis)
  • Lake Baikal Mountain Vole (A. olchonensis)
  • Subgenus Platycranius: Flat-headed Vole (A. strelzowi)
Caryomys
  • Ganzu Vole (C. eva)
  • Kolan Vole (C. inez)
Eothenomys
  • Kachin Red-backed Vole (E. cachinus)
  • Pratt's Vole (E. chinensis)
  • Southwest China Vole (E. custos)
  • Père David's Vole (E. melanogaster)
  • Yunnan red-backed vole (E. miletus)
  • Chaotung Vole (E. olitor)
  • Yulungshan Vole (E. proditor)
  • Ward's Red-backed Vole (E. wardi)
Hyperacrius
  • True's Vole (H. fertilis)
  • Murree Vole (H. wynnei)
Myodes
  • Japanese Red-Backed Vole (M. andersoni)
  • Western Red-backed Vole (M. californicus)
  • Tien Shan Red-backed Vole (M. centralis)
  • Southern Red-backed Vole (M. gapperi)
  • Bank Vole (M. glareolus)
  • Imaizumi's Red-backed Vole (M. imaizumii)
  • Royal Vole (M. regulus)
  • Hokkaido Red-backed Vole (M. rex)
  • Grey Red-backed Vole (M. rufocanus)
  • Northern Red-backed Vole (M. rutilus)
  • Shansei Vole (M. shanseius)
  • Smith's Vole (M. smithii)
Neofibrini
Neofiber
  • Round-tailed Muskrat (N. alleni)
Ondatrini
Ondatra
  • Muskrat (O. zibethicus)
Pliomyini
Dinaromys
  • Balkan Snow Vole (D. bogdanovi)
Prometheomyini
Prometheomys
  • Long-clawed Mole Vole (P. schaposchnikowi)
incertae sedis
Arborimus
  • White-footed Vole (A. albipes)
  • Red Tree Vole (A. longicaudus)
  • California Red Tree Mouse (A. pomo)
Phenacomys
  • Western Heather Vole (P. intermedius)
  • Eastern Heather Vole (P. ungava)


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