Black-clawed brush-furred rat

The black-clawed brush-furred rat (Lophuromys melanonyx) is a rodent in the family Muridae found only in Ethiopia, where it lives in high-altitude grassland and Afro-alpine moorland, typically above 3200 metres and up to about 4050 metres in the Bale Mountains. It is one of the largest species of its genus, with grey-brown fur speckled with cream, a white underside, white feet with long black claws, a very short tail, and a weight of about 60 to 142 grams. It is active by day and digs burrows with its claws, and its diet is mostly herbs with some seeds and insects. Habitat loss threatens it, and the IUCN lists it as Vulnerable because its range is small and fragmented.