The genus name Mesomys derives from the two
ancient greek words μέσος (mésos), meaning "middle of, between", and μῦς (mûs), meaning "mouse, rat".[2][3] It refers to the fact that these rodents — literally the "middle mouse" — were considered an intermediate form between the genus Loncheres and the genus Echinomys, both of which are now known to be
synonyms of Echimys.[4][5]
Mesomys is a member of the
Echimyini clade of
arboreal Echimyidae rodents.[6] The closest relative of Mesomys is Lonchothrix, reflecting the fact that these taxa have once been classified in the
Eumysopinae,[1] a subfamily now recognized as an artificial assemblage.[7] These two genera share phylogenetic affinities with several taxa and clades: (i) Echimys, Phyllomys, Makalata, Pattonomys, and Toromys ; (ii) the bamboo rats Dactylomys, Olallamys, Kannabateomys together with Diplomys and Santamartamys ; and (iii) Isothrix.[8]
^Lara, Márcia C.;
Patton, James L.; da Silva, Maria Nazareth F. (1996). "The Simultaneous Diversification of South American Echimyid Rodents (Hystricognathi) Based on Complete Cytochrome b Sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 5 (2): 403–413.
doi:
10.1006/mpev.1996.0035.
PMID8728398.
^Leite, Yuri L. R.;
Patton, James L. (2002). "Evolution of South American spiny rats (Rodentia, Echimyidae): the star-phylogeny hypothesis revisited". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 25 (3): 455–464.
doi:
10.1016/s1055-7903(02)00279-8.
^Galewski, Thomas; Mauffrey, Jean-François; Leite, Yuri L. R.; Patton, James L.; Douzery, Emmanuel J. P. (2005). "Ecomorphological diversification among South American spiny rats (Rodentia; Echimyidae): a phylogenetic and chronological approach". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 34 (3): 601–615.
doi:
10.1016/j.ympev.2004.11.015.
PMID15683932.
^Upham, Nathan S.; Patterson, Bruce D. (2012). "Diversification and biogeography of the Neotropical caviomorph lineage Octodontoidea (Rodentia: Hystricognathi)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 63 (2): 417–429.
doi:
10.1016/j.ympev.2012.01.020.
PMID22327013.
^Upham, Nathan S.; Patterson, Bruce D. (2015). "Evolution of Caviomorph rodents: a complete phylogeny and timetree for living genera". In Vassallo, Aldo Ivan; Antenucci, Daniel (eds.). Biology of caviomorph rodents: diversity and evolution. Buenos Aires: SAREM Series A, Mammalogical Research — Sociedad Argentina para el Estudio de los Mamíferos. pp. 63–120.