Micromys is a genus of small rodent

Rodent

Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....

s in the subfamily Murinae

Murinae

The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. This subfamily is larger than all mammal families except the Cricetidae and Muridae, and is larger than all mammal orders except the bats and the remainder of the...

 without close relations to any other murine genus. It contains two living species: the widespread Eurasian harvest mouse (Micromys minutus) of much of Europe and Asia and the more restricted Micromys erythrotis of Vietnam, southern China, and perhaps nearby regions. Fossil

Fossil

Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s of Micromys date back to the Late Miocene

Late Miocene

The Late Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages. The Tortonian and Messinian stages comprise the Late Miocene sub-epoch....

and include at least ten extinct species, which form several lineages.