New distribution records of Serra do Mar Grass Mouse Akodon serrensis Thomas, 1902 (Mammalia: Rodentia: Sigmodontinae) in the southernmost Brazil

ABREU, M.S.L.; CHRISTOFF, A.U.; VALIATI, V.H.; OLIVEIRA, L.R. 2014. New distribution records of Serra do Mar Grass Mouse Akodon serrensis Thomas, 1902 (Mammalia: Rodentia: Sigmodontinae) in the southernmost Brazil. Check List 10(3):655-659. doi: 10.15560/10.3.655

Abstract. Geographic distribution is critical information for conservation of the species. In this note we report the southernmost record of Akodon serrensis, a Neotropical terrestrial rodent endemic of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, but yet with undefined distribution limits. Two specimens surveyed in Rio Grande do Sul state were identified as A. serrensis, one by DNA analysis and other by external and cranial morphology. These records represent an expansion of nearly 177 km from the previous known limit of its southern distribution. Moreover, these new records demonstrated the importance of sampling effort in order to establish the real distribution limits of a species.