List of mammals of São Tomé and Príncipe

This is a list of the mammal species recorded in São Tomé and Príncipe. These are the native terrestrial and naturally occurring marine mammal species in São Tomé and Príncipe, of which two are critically endangered, one is endangered, and two are near threatened. In addition, six species of terrestrial mammal have been introduced to the islands, and eight domestic species have become feral or otherwise pose a threat to the native fauna.

The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature:

Some species were assessed using an earlier set of criteria. Species assessed using this system have the following instead of near threatened and least concern categories:

Order: Rodentia

 * Family: Muridae
 * Subfamily: Murinae
 * Genus: Mus
 * House mouse, Mus musculus (introduced)
 * Genus: Rattus
 * Common rat, Rattus norvegicus (introduced)
 * Ship rat, Rattus rattus (introduced)

Order: Primates
The order Primates contains humans and their closest relatives: lemurs, lorisoids, tarsiers, monkeys, and apes.


 * Suborder: Haplorhini
 * Infraorder: Simiiformes
 * Parvorder: Catarrhini
 * Superfamily: Cercopithecoidea
 * Family: Cercopithecidae (Old World monkeys)
 * Genus: Cercopithecus
 * Mona monkey, C. mona introduced

Order: Soricomorpha (shrews, moles, and solenodons)
The "shrew-forms" are insectivorous mammals. The shrews and solenodons closely resemble mice, while the moles are stout-bodied burrowers.


 * Family: Soricidae (shrews)
 * Subfamily: Crocidurinae
 * Genus: Crocidura
 * Fraser's musk shrew, Crocidura poensis
 * São Tomé shrew, Crocidura thomensis

Order: Chiroptera (bats)
The bats' most distinguishing feature is that their forelimbs are developed as wings, making them the only mammals capable of flight. Bat species account for about 20% of all mammals.


 * Family: Pteropodidae (flying foxes, Old World fruit bats)
 * Subfamily: Pteropodinae
 * Genus: Eidolon
 * Straw-coloured fruit bat, Eidolon helvum
 * Genus: Myonycteris
 * São Tomé collared fruit bat, Myonycteris brachycephala
 * Genus: Rousettus
 * Egyptian fruit bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus
 * Family: Vespertilionidae
 * Subfamily: Miniopterinae
 * Genus: Miniopterus
 * Least long-fingered bat, Miniopterus minor
 * Family: Molossidae
 * Genus: Chaerephon
 * Little free-tailed bat, Chaerephon pumila
 * São Tomé free-tailed bat, Chaerephon tomensis
 * Family: Emballonuridae
 * Genus: Taphozous
 * Mauritian tomb bat, Taphozous mauritianus
 * Family: Rhinolophidae
 * Subfamily: Hipposiderinae
 * Genus: Hipposideros
 * Noack's roundleaf bat, Hipposideros ruber
 * Saõ Tomé leaf-nosed bat, Hipposideros thomensis

Order: Carnivora

 * Family: Viverridae
 * Subfamily: Viverrinae
 * Genus: Civettictis
 * African civet, Civettictis civetta (introduced)
 * Family: Mustelidae
 * Subfamily: Mustelinae
 * Genus: Mustela
 * Least weasel, Mustela nivalis (introduced)

Order: Cetacea (whales)
The order Cetacea includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. They are the mammals most fully adapted to aquatic life with a spindle-shaped nearly hairless body, protected by a thick layer of blubber, and forelimbs and tail modified to provide propulsion underwater.


 * Suborder: Mysticeti
 * Family: Balaenopteridae
 * Subfamily: Balaenopterinae
 * Genus: Balaenoptera
 * Common minke whale, Balaenoptera acutorostrata
 * Antarctic minke whale, Balaenoptera bonaerensis
 * Sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis
 * Bryde's whale, Balaenoptera edeni
 * Blue whale, Balaenoptera musculus
 * Fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus
 * Subfamily: Megapterinae
 * Genus: Megaptera
 * Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
 * Suborder: Odontoceti
 * Superfamily: Platanistoidea
 * Family: Physeteridae
 * Genus: Physeter
 * Sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus
 * Family: Kogiidae
 * Genus: Kogia
 * Pygmy sperm whale, Kogia breviceps
 * Dwarf sperm whale, Kogia sima
 * Family: Ziphidae
 * Subfamily: Hyperoodontinae
 * Genus: Mesoplodon
 * Blainville's beaked whale, Mesoplodon densirostris
 * Gervais' beaked whale, Mesoplodon europaeus
 * Genus: Ziphius
 * Cuvier's beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris
 * Family: Delphinidae (marine dolphins)
 * Genus: Steno
 * Rough-toothed dolphin, Steno bredanensis
 * Genus: Tursiops
 * Common bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus
 * Genus: Delphinus
 * Long-beaked common dolphin, Delphinus capensis
 * Genus: Stenella
 * Pantropical spotted dolphin, Stenella attenuata
 * Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba
 * Atlantic spotted dolphin, Stenella frontalis
 * Clymene dolphin, Stenella clymene
 * Spinner dolphin, Stenella longirostris
 * Genus: Lagenodelphis
 * Fraser's dolphin, Lagenodelphis hosei
 * Genus: Sousa
 * Atlantic humpback dolphin, Sousa teuszii
 * Genus: Orcinus
 * Orca, Orcinus orca
 * Genus: Feresa
 * Pygmy killer whale, Feresa attenuata
 * Genus: Pseudorca
 * False killer whale, Pseudorca crassidens
 * Genus: Globicephala
 * Short-finned pilot whale, Globicephala macrorhynchus
 * Genus: Peponocephala
 * Melon-headed whale, Peponocephala electra