The White-tailed rat Mystromys albicaudatus (A. Smith, 1834), has a sacculated bilocular hemiglandular stomach, with the papillated forestomach densely packed with bacteria. Digestibility studies of different feeds varying in protein, carbohydrate, fat and fibre were carried out to determine the role of the forestomach bacteria in the digestive activity of the White-tailed rat. The Pouched mouse Saccostomus campestris (Peters, 1846) was used as a control. It has a unilocular hemiglandular stomach and a low density of bacteria in the forestomach. The corpal bacteria of the White-tailed rat appear to have a limited role in the fermentation of fibre, the digestion of soluble carbohydrates and proteins. The significantly higher utilization of fats in M. albicaudatus suggests that the corpal bacteria may compensate for the lack of the gall bladder in this rodent.
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