This species can be found in the East African montane moorlands ecoregion, a specialized habitat occurring above 3000 meters in elevation in equatorial East Africa. Soils here are acidic and the climate is harsh, with year around nightly frost, accompanied by intense daytime solar insolation and heat. Glaciers cover the upper elevations of the ecoregion.
The King Mole Rat (Tachyoryctes rex) is an endemic mammal to the ecoregion; this is a burrowing rodent that is known only to the higher elevations of Mount Kenya. There are a number of other endemic small mammals to the East African montane moorlands. Another endemic mammal to the ecoregion is the Mount Kenya Mole Shrew (Surdisorex polulus), which is found only at the higher elevations of Mount Kenya; however, this Vulnerable Mole Shrew is not a strict associate to all the other ecoregion fauna, since its range is not overlapping with most of the animals of this ecoregion. The Vulnerable East African Highland Shrew (Crocidura allex) is a near endemic to the ecoregion, that is also found in upper elevation portions of the adjacent East African montane forests ecoregion. Another imputed endemic mammal to the ecoregion is Peter's Musk Shrew (Crocidura gracilipes).
A number of endemic anurans are found within the East African montane moorlands. The Marsabit Clawed Frog (Xenopus borealis) is a near endemic anuran, which is also found in the upper elevations of the adjacent East African montane forests ecoregion. Another near endemic amphibian is the Molo Frog (Amietia wittei), which is found only in the Kenyan central highlands and northern Tanzania in the East African montane moorlands and slightly lower in elevation in the East African montane forests. The near endemic Mountain Reed Frog (Hyperolius montanus) is found only in the Kenyan highlands of the ecoregion and also in the adjacent East African montane forests ecoregion. The Tigoni Reed Frog (Hyperolius cystocandicans) is a Vulnerable near endemic, found only in Kenya in this ecoregion and the adjacent East African montane forests.
The Mount Kenya Side-stripedChameleon (Triceros schubotzi) is an endemic reptile forund in the ecoregion; a second member of this genus, Triceros sternfeldi, is also endemic to the East African montane moorlands. The High-casqued Chameleon (Triceros hoehnelii) is a near endemic reptile to the East African montane moorlands; it is also found in higher elevations of the adjacent East African montane forests ecoregion. The Kenya Montane Viper (Montatheris hindii) is a near endemic that occurs only in the Kenyan part of the ecoregion and at slightly lower elevations in parts of the Kenyan East African montane moorlands.Special status reptiles found in the ecoregion include the Vulnerable Alpine Meadow Lizard (Adolfus alleni), a near endemic found only at high altitudes (above 2700 meters) on Mount Elgon, Mount Kenya, Cheragani Hills and the Aberdare Mountains.
There are a number of endemic plant groups within the ecoregion, likely driven by the extreme geographic isolation of these alpine patches. The giant groundsels are one prominent group of flowering plant species present; this unusual plant group achieves tree-like stature with some unusual methods of cold weather adaptation, even though they are members of the herbaceous family Asteraceae.
Certain giant lobelias occur in the East African montane moorlands. For example, Lobelia deckenii, found on Mount Kenya is characterised by small stores of water retained in its basal rosettes; although this retained water freezes each night, the frozen water protects the apical meristem held in a rather dense central leaf bud.
The King African mole-rat,[3] King mole-rat,[4] or Alpine mole-rat,[5] (Tachyoryctes rex) is a burrowing rodent in the genus Tachyoryctes of family Spalacidae.[6] It only occurs high on Mount Kenya, where it is common. Originally described as a separate species related to Aberdare Mountains African mole-rat, (T. audax) in 1910, some classify it as the same species as the East African mole-rat, (T. splendens).
It is a very large, brownish species, with head and body length ranging from 222 to 268 mm (8.7 to 10.6 in). The young are dark with irregular white patches on their underparts. The animal builds large burrows and perhaps associated mounds and eats plant roots.
In 1909, John Alden Loring collected the holotype while on the Smithsonian-Roosevelt African Expedition led by Theodore Roosevelt.[7] The next year, Edmund Heller described the species as Tachyoryctes rex; he thought it most closely related to another Kenyan species, T. audax.[2] In 1919, Ned Hollister provided additional information using more material, and affirmed the relationship between T. rex and T. audax. He noted that the two were similar in coloration, but that T. rex was much larger;[8] according to Heller, T. audax is somewhat darker in color.[2] Since 1974, some taxonomic works have included T. rex and many other Tachyoryctes species in T. splendens, though without evaluation of the distinctive characters of the previously recognized species.[9] The 2009 IUCN Red List follows this arrangement,[10] but the 2005 third edition of Mammal Species of the World describes T. rex as a "distinctive species".[3]
Tachyoryctes rex is a very large species with fluffy fur.[8] It is reddish-brown above and lighter brown below. The tip of the snout and the throat are black, and an area around the mouth is white. The feet are brown, but the toes are white. The tail is dark above and off-white below.[2] Males are larger than females. Young animals are dark-furred, with some irregular white areas on their underparts. In young animals, the crown area of the molars is small, but it grows with wear in adulthood until reaching a maximum, after which it shrinks again. The iris is dark gray-brown.[8] In 14 specimens, head and body length is 222 to 268 mm (8.7 to 10.6 in), tail length is 54 to 80 mm (2.1 to 3.1 in), hindfoot length is 29 to 33 mm (1.1 to 1.3 in), and skull (condylobasal) length is 47 to 57 mm (1.9 to 2.2 in).[12]
In comparison to those of Tachyoryctes audax, the nasal bones are larger and have angles at the sides. T. annectens, which is nearly as large, has smaller teeth and nasals; in T. rex, the basioccipital is broader, and the back part of the mandible (lower jaw) is better developed and has the capsule of the incisor placed further to the front.[2]
Tachyoryctes rex is found on the western slope of Mount Kenya, Kenya, at 2,600 to 3,350 m (8,500 to 11,000 ft) in altitude.[3] It is common in a limited area, at the upper edge of the bamboo forest and lower edge of the moorland.[2] A female found on October 5 had a large embryo.[8] T. rex builds large mounds with diameters up to 6 m (20 ft).[13] Some have interpreted these mounds as being built by termites instead.[14] From those mounds, burrows may extend up to 50 m (160 ft) and be up to 1 m (3.3 ft) deep. One chamber is used for urination and defecation and to store plant matter; it produces a substantial amount of heat. In other chambers, T. rex builds large nests of grass.[15] The animal eats plant roots. Its presence results in a change in vegetation on the mounds, which have fewer grasses and more woody plants, either because the animal eats plant roots or because the soil is altered.[16]
The King African mole-rat, King mole-rat, or Alpine mole-rat, (Tachyoryctes rex) is a burrowing rodent in the genus Tachyoryctes of family Spalacidae. It only occurs high on Mount Kenya, where it is common. Originally described as a separate species related to Aberdare Mountains African mole-rat, (T. audax) in 1910, some classify it as the same species as the East African mole-rat, (T. splendens).
It is a very large, brownish species, with head and body length ranging from 222 to 268 mm (8.7 to 10.6 in). The young are dark with irregular white patches on their underparts. The animal builds large burrows and perhaps associated mounds and eats plant roots.
