Maned rat
Lophiomys imhausi Milne-Edwards, 1867
The maned rat (Lophiomys imhausi) is a species in the family Cricetidae, order Rodentia. Recorded adults weigh about 755 g and live up to 7.5 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the maned rat
- Weight
- 755 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 7.5 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1.75src for Young per litter or clutch
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Scansorialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the maned rat live?
Not recorded
What is the maned rat?
The maned rat or African crested rat (Lophiomys imhausi) is a large nocturnal, long-haired and bushy-tailed East African rodent that superficially resembles a porcupine. The world's only known poisonous rodent, the maned rat coats itself in toxins from plants to fend off predators.
From the Wikipedia article “Maned rat” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Maned_rat&oldid=1384693547), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the maned rat endangered?
The maned rat is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the maned rat classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderRodentia
- familyCricetidae
- genusLophiomys
- SpeciesLophiomys imhausi Milne-Edwards, 1867
Synonyms Lophiomys bozasi, Lophiomys ibeanus, Lophiomys ibeanus hindei, Lophiomys thomasi
Other names and names in other languages (18)
- African crested ratEnglish
- Crested ratEnglish
- Crested ratEnglish
- chlupáč dlouhosrstýCzech
- MähnenratteGerman
- rata de crinSpanish
- kapinharjakasFinnish
- Rat à crêteFrench
- Hamster d'ImhausFrench
- Hamster d'ImhauseFrench
- Rat à crinièreFrench
- タテガミネズミJapanese
- MankerotteNorwegian Bokmål
- ManenratDutch
- GrzywakPolish
- grzywak afrykańskiPolish
- Косматый хомякRussian
- Yeleli FaregilTurkish
Relatives of the maned rat
Other species in the same family Cricetidae.
Muskrat
Ondatra zibethicus
European water vole
Arvicola amphibius
European hamster
Cricetus cricetus
Common vole
Microtus arvalis
Bank vole
Myodes glareolus
Golden hamster
Mesocricetus auratus
CompareManed rat vs MuskratManed rat vs European water voleManed rat vs European hamsterManed rat vs Common vole
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the maned rat?
An adult maned rat weighs 755 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the maned rat endangered?
The maned rat is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the maned rat live?
The maned rat has a recorded lifespan of 7.5 years.
What kind of animal is the maned rat?
The maned rat (Lophiomys imhausi) belongs to the family Cricetidae in the order Rodentia.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Maned rat (Lophiomys imhausi). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/maned-rat
“Maned rat (Lophiomys imhausi).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/maned-rat.
@misc{maned_rat_2026,
title = {Maned rat (Lophiomys imhausi)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/maned-rat},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}