The pen-tailed tree-shrew (Ptilocercus lowii) is a species of treeshrew in the Ptilocercidae family. It is found in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. It is the only species in the genus Ptilocercus and the family Ptilocercidae. All other tree-shrews are in the family Tupaiidae.
The pen-tailed tree-shrew is the only known wild mammal that chronically (i.e., not just occasionally) consumes alcohol. A study of the tree-shrew in Malaysia found that it spends several hours consuming the equivalent of 10 to 12 glasses of wine with an alcohol content of up to 3.8% every night drinking naturally fermented nectar of the bertam palm. Despite consuming relatively large amounts of alcohol, the pen-tailed tree-shrew does not become intoxicated. Measurements of a biomarker of ethanol breakdown suggest that they may be metabolizing it by a pathway that is not used as heavily by humans, a fellow member of the grandorder of mammals Euarchonta.
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