Myomorpha

Belongs within: Rodentia.
Contains: Dipodidae, Rhizomyoidea, Nesomyidae, Cricetidae, Muridae.

The Myomorpha are a universally recognised rodent clade uniting the Dipodoidea (jerboas and allies) with the Muroidea (true rats and mice) (some authors use the name ‘Myomorpha’ for a larger clade also including the Geomyoidea, pocket gophers, in which case the smaller clade is called Myodonta). Myomorphs are distinguished by a unique muscular structure, with the medial and lateral masseter muscles moved forward relative to other rodents, as well as sharing a distinct cephalic arterial pattern (Jaeger 1988).

Within the myomorphs, the Dipodoidea are distinguished by the presence of an independent lower vascular groove on the infraorbital foramen. They are often divided between the Dipodidae (jerboas) and Zapodidae (jumping mice and birch mice); however, as the Zapodidae are generally distinguished by the absence of apomorphic features of the Dipodidae (such as fused foot bones and vertebrae), their monophyly is questionable. The Muroidea are distinguished by the presence of a distinct anterocone on the first molar, the absence of the fourth lower premolar, and a confluence of the masseteric and neurovascular foramina on the anterior zygoma (Jaeger 1988). Classification of the muroids has varied between authors (some have even placed all muroids in a single family, the Muridae), but the basalmost-diverging living muroids may be the Oriental dormice of the Platacanthomyidae. Also nested within the Muroidea are the Rhizomyoidea (bamboo rats and mole rats), burrowing rodents found in Africa and Eurasia (not to be confused with the mole rats of the Bathyergidae).

<==Myomorpha [Myodonta]SM93
    |--SciuravidaeR06
    |    |--Knightomys Gazin 1961SM93
    |    |--TillomysSP96
    |    |    |--T. parvidens (Marsh 1872)G52
    |    |    |--T. senex Marsh 1872G52
    |    |    `--T. senior Gazin 1952G52
    |    `--SciuravusMHL03
    |         |--S. altidensP96
    |         |--S. bridgeriG52
    |         |--S. depressus Loomis 1907G52
    |         |--S. nitidusMFT96
    |         |--S. popiP96
    |         `--S. powayensis Wilson 1940W96
    `--+--Dipodoidea [Zapodidae]J88
       |    |  i. s.: Askyiromys dalosR06, OB13
       |    |         PrimisminthusR06
       |    |         BanyuesminthusR06
       |    |         SimiacritomysR06
       |    |--DipodidaeFS15
       |    `--Sicista [Sicistinae, Sminthidae]FS15
       |         |--S. armenicaIT07
       |         |--S. betulinaB74
       |         |--S. caucasicaIT07
       |         |--S. caudataIT07
       |         |--S. concolorIT07
       |         |--S. kazbegicaIT07
       |         |--S. kluchoricaIT07
       |         |--S. napaeaIT07
       |         |--S. pseudonapaeaIT07
       |         |--S. severtzoviIT07
       |         |--S. strandiIT07
       |         |--S. subtilisIT07
       |         `--S. tianshanicaIT07
       `--MuroideaMJ11
            |--PlatycanthomyidaeMJ11
            |    |--Platacanthomys lasiurusIT07
            |    `--TyphlomysMJ11
            |         |--T. chapensisIT07
            |         `--T. cinereusIT07
            `--+--RhizomyoideaFS15
               `--+--Cricetodon [Cricetodontidae]B74
                  |    |--C. ibericusL78
                  |    `--C. rhodanicumMHL03
                  |--+--NesomyidaeMJ11
                  |  `--+--CricetidaeMJ11
                  |     `--MuridaeMJ11
                  `--Calomyscus Thomas 1905P04 [CalomyscidaeMJ11]
                       |--C. baluchiFS15
                       |--C. hotsoniFS15
                       |--C. tsoloviFS15
                       |--C. urartensisFS15
                       |--+--C. bailwardiFS15
                       |  `--C. grandisFS15
                       `--+--C. elburzensisFS15
                          `--C. mystaxFS15
Myomorpha incertae sedis:
  SimimyidaeSM93
    |--Simimys Wilson 1935SM93
    |    `--S. simplex (Wilson 1935)W96
    `--Nonomys Emry & Dawson 1973SM93
         `--N. simplicidensOB13
  DistylomyidaeSM93
    |--Prodistylomys Wang & Qi 1989SM93
    `--Distylomys Wang 1988SM93
  Armintomys Dawson et al. 1990 [Armintomyidae]SM93
  Ivanantonia Shevyreva 1989 [Ivanantoniidae]SM93
    `--I. efremoviMHL03

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[B74] Bugge, J. 1974. The cephalic arterial system in insectivores, primates, rodents and lagomorphs, with special reference to the systematic classification. Acta Anatomica 87 (Suppl 62): 1–160.

[FS15] Faurby, S., & J.-C. Svenning. 2015. A species-level phylogeny of all extant and late Quaternary extinct mammals using a novel heuristic-hierarchical Bayesian approach. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 14–26.

[G52] Gazin, C. L. 1952. The Lower Eocene Knight Formation of western Wyoming and its mammalian faunas. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 117 (18): 1–82, 11 pls.

[IT07] Isaac, N. J. B., S. T. Turvey, B. Collen, C. Waterman & J. E. M. Baillie. 2007. Mammals on the EDGE: conservation priorities based on threat and phylogeny. PloS One 2 (3): e296.

[J88] Jaeger, J.-J. 1988. Rodent phylogeny: new data and old problems. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Phylogeny and Classification of the Tetrapods vol. 2. Mammals pp. 177–199. Clarendon Press: Oxford.

[L78] Lavocat, L. 1978. Rodentia and Lagomorpha. In: Maglio, V. J., & H. B. S. Cooke (eds) Evolution of African Mammals pp. 69–89. Harvard University Press: Cambridge (Massachusetts).

[MFT96] McCarroll, S. M., J. J. Flynn & W. D. Turnbull. 1996. Biostratigraphy and magnetostratigraphy of the Bridgerian-Uintan Washakie Formation, Washakie Basin, Wyoming. In: Prothero, D. R., & R. J. Emry (eds) The Terrestrial Eocene–Oligocene Transition in North America pp. 25–39. Cambridge University Press.

[MHL03] Meng, J., Y. Hu & C. Li. 2003. The osteology of Rhombomylus (Mammalia, Glires): Implications for phylogeny and evolution of Glires. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 275: 1–247.

[MJ11] Meredith, R. W., J. E. Janečka, J. Gatesy, O. A. Ryder, C. A. Fisher, E. C. Teeling, A. Goodbla, E. Eizirik, T. L. L. Simão, T. Stadler, D. L. Rabosky, R. L. Honeycutt, J. J. Flynn, C. M. Ingram, C. Steiner, T. L. Williams, T. J. Robinson, A. Burk-Herrick, M. Westerman, N. A. Ayoub, M. S. Springer & W. J. Murphy. 2011. Impacts of the Cretaceous terrestrial revolution and KPg extinction on mammal diversification. Science 334: 521–524.

[OB13] O’Leary, M. A., J. I. Bloch, J. J. Flynn, T. J. Gaudin, A. Giallombardo, N. P. Giannini, S. L. Goldberg, B. P. Kraatz, Z.-X. Luo, J. Meng, X. Ni, M. J. Novacek, F. A. Perini, Z. S. Randall, G. W. Rougier, E. J. Sargis, M. T. Silcox, N. B. Simmons, M. Spaulding, P. M. Velazco, M. Weksler, J. R. Wible & A. L. Cirranello. 2013. The placental mammal ancestor and the post-K–Pg radiation of placentals. Science 339: 662–667.

[P04] Popov, V. V. 2004. Pliocene small mammals (Mammalia, Lipotyphla, Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, Rodentia) from Muselievo (north Bulgaria). Geodiversitas 26 (3): 403–491.

[P96] Prothero, D. R. 1996. Magnetic stratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the Middle Eocene Uinta Formation, Uinta Basin, Utah. In: Prothero, D. R., & R. J. Emry (eds) The Terrestrial Eocene–Oligocene Transition in North America pp. 3–24. Cambridge University Press.

[R06] Rose, K. D. 2006. The Beginning of the Age of Mammals. John Hopkins University Press: Baltimore.

[SM93] Stucky, R. K., & M. C. McKenna. 1993. Mammalia. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 739–771. Chapman & Hall: London.

[SP96] Stucky, R. K., D. R. Prothero, W. G. Lohr & J. R. Snyder. 1996. Magnetic stratigraphy, sedimentology, and mammalian faunas of the Early Uintan Washakie Formation, Sand Wash Bain, northwestern Colorado. In: Prothero, D. R., & R. J. Emry (eds) The Terrestrial Eocene–Oligocene Transition in North America pp. 40–51. Cambridge University Press.

[W96] Walsh, S. L. 1996. S. Middle Eocene mammal faunas of San Diego County, California. In: Prothero, D. R., & R. J. Emry (eds) The Terrestrial Eocene–Oligocene Transition in North America pp. 75–119. Cambridge University Press.