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Tamias (chipmunk)

Mammalia - Rodentia - Sciuridae

Taxonomy
Tamias was named by Illinger (1811). It is extant.

It was assigned to Agilia by Illiger (1811); to Sciurina by Gray (1825); to Sciurinae by Hay (1902); to Tamiini by de Bruijn et al. (1980); to Sciuridae by Illinger (1811), Bryant (1945), Ray (1965), Wilson (1967), Kurten and Anderson (1980) and McKenna and Bell (1997); and to Marmotini by Mercer and Roth (2003).

Synonymy list
YearName and author
1811Tamias Illiger p. 83
1811Tamias Illinger
1825Tamia Gray p. 342
1902Tamias Hay p. 720
1945Tamias Bryant p. 371
1965Tamias Ray
1967Tamias Wilson p. 208
1980Tamias Kurten and Anderson p. 220
1980Tamias de Bruijn et al. p. 255
1997Tamias McKenna and Bell
2003Tamias Mercer and Roth

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RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
Bilateria
EubilateriaAx 1987
Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
Tetrapoda
Reptiliomorpha
Anthracosauria
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
Cotylosauria()
Amniota
subclassSynapsida
Therapsida()
infraorderCynodontia()
Mammaliamorpha
RankNameAuthor
Mammaliaformes
classMammalia
Theriamorpha(Rowe 1993)
Theriiformes()
Trechnotheria
Cladotheria
Zatheria
subclassTribosphenida()
subclassTheria
Eutheria()
Placentalia
Boreoeutheria
EuarchontogliresMurphy et al. 2001
GliriformesWyss and Meng 1996
Glires()
Simplicidentata()
orderRodentiaBowdich 1821
superfamilySciuroidea
familySciuridae
tribeMarmotini
genusTamiasIllinger 1811

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

G. Tamias Illinger 1811 [chipmunk]
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Tamias aristus Ray 1965
Tamias ateles Hall 1930
Tamias eviensis de Bruijn et al. 1980
Tamias laevidens Cope 1869
Tamias striatus Linnaeus 1758 [eastern chipmunk]
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Invalid names: Sciurus lysteri Richardson 1829 [synonym]
Diagnosis
ReferenceDiagnosis
M. D. Bryant 1945Zygomatic plate slants upward at an angle of about 45º to basicranial axis and is more nearly horizontal than in other sciurids; in correlation with this the zygoma is less concave dorsally than in other squirrels, infraorbital foramen pierces zygomatic plate, and infraorbital canal is absent. Infraorbital foramen relatively larger, probably in correlation with origin of ventral head of maxillonasalis muscle (see page 314), and more nearly circular than in other sciurids. Notches in zygomatic plates opposite P4 or occasionally oppo- site anterior edge of M1; width of plates between zygomatic notches and infraorbital foramina correspondingly narrow. Anterior cranial fossa larger than that in terrestrial sciurids, except Otospermophilus and Callospermophilus; interorbital region correspondingly broad. Cranium narrow, slightly inflated, and smoothly rounded. Dorsal outline of skull less convex than in other squirrels except Marmota. Cheek teeth low-crowned (see table 1); ectolophids low and submarginal; prominent mesoconid present on m1 and m2. Form of baculum distinctive (see page 306).