Southern African vlei rat

Southern African vlei rat
A southern African vlei rat, grazing beside a reed-fringed dam
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Genus: Otomys
Species:
O. irroratus
Binomial name
Otomys irroratus
(Brants, 1827)

The Southern African vlei rat (Otomys irroratus) is a species of rodent in the vlei rat genus, Otomys, of the family Muridae in the order Rodentia. This is the type species of the genus. It is native to the grasslands and swamps of southern Africa where it is a common species.