Heteromys
Heteromys desmarestianus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Infraclass:	Placentalia
Order:	Rodentia
Family:	Heteromyidae
Subfamily:	Heteromyinae
Genus:	HeteromysDesmarest, 1817
Type species
Mus anomalus Thompson, 1815

Heteromys is a genus of rodents in the family Heteromyidae,^[1] commonly known as spiny pocket mice. It is the only extant genus in the subfamily Heteromyinae which also includes the extinct genera Diprionomys and Metaliomys.^[2]Heteromys was recently enlarged by inclusion of the members of formerly recognized heteromyine genus Liomys, which was found to be paraphyletic.^[3]

Heteromyines are distributed from southern Texas to Ecuador and Venezuela, and include all but one of the castorimorph species of South America. Like all of South America's other non-caviomorph rodents, they arrived in the continent relatively recently as part of the Great American Interchange. They inhabit mainly forests; some are also found in scrubland.

The genus Heteromys comprises the following species of spiny pocket mice:

• Panamanian spiny pocket mouse (H. adspersus)
• Trinidad spiny pocket mouse (H. anomalus)
• Southern spiny pocket mouse (H. australis)
• Overlook spiny pocket mouse (H. catopterius)^[4]
• Desmarest's spiny pocket mouse (H. desmarestianus)
• Gaumer's spiny pocket mouse (H. gaumeri)
• Goldman's spiny pocket mouse (H. goldmani)
• Mexican spiny pocket mouse (H. irroratus)
• Nelson's spiny pocket mouse (H. nelsoni)
• Cloud-dwelling spiny pocket mouse (H. nubicolens)^[5]
• Paraguaná spiny pocket mouse (H. oasicus)
• Mountain spiny pocket mouse (H. oresterus)
• Painted spiny pocket mouse (H. pictus)
• Salvin's spiny pocket mouse (H. salvini)
• Jaliscan spiny pocket mouse (H. spectabilis)
• Ecuadoran spiny pocket mouse (H. teleus)