Asiatic black rat

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Asiatic black rat
Systematics
Family : Long-tailed mice (Muridae)
Subfamily : Old World Mice (Murinae)
Tribe : Rattini
Rattus group
Genre : Rats ( rattus )
Type : Asiatic black rat
Scientific name
Rattus tanezumi
Temminck , 1844

The Asiatic house rat ( Rattus tanezumi ) is a species of mammal belonging to the genus of rats within rodents (Rodentia). For a long time it was considered the Asian form of the house rat ( Rattus rattus ) and is widespread across large parts of Asia. As a neozoon , it was also introduced mainly to Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands.

features

The Asian house rat is a medium-sized rat with a head-trunk length of 10.5 to 21.5 centimeters and a tail length of 12 to 23 centimeters. This means that the length of the tail roughly corresponds to the rest of the body length. Compared to the closely related house rat ( Rattus rattus ), however, the tail is somewhat shorter in relation to the body. It largely corresponds to the house rat in terms of both color and habit and can only be reliably differentiated from it on the basis of genetic data. The fur is very short and rough. The back color consists of various shades of brown and pale brown hair with black tips of hair. The ventral side is gray with yellowish-white hair tips. The tail is monochrome brown or a little lighter in the area of ​​the tail base on the underside than on the upper side. The feet are whitish on the sides and on the fingers with gray-brown spots. The hind feet reach a length of 26 to 35 millimeters, the ears a length of 17 to 23 centimeters.

distribution

The range of the Asiatic house rat consists of an area where the rat was originally distributed and a number of areas where it was introduced. The exact delimitations of these areas have not yet been fully clarified. Its natural range probably extends from eastern Afghanistan across northeast India , Nepal , Bhutan , Bangladesh and large areas of the People's Republic of China , including Hainan , and Korea . From here it stretches south over Laos , Cambodia , Vietnam and Thailand to the Isthmus of Kra . It is unclear whether the Japanese islands and Taiwan belong to the original range or whether the species was introduced to the islands. However, the species was safely introduced to Malaysia and the Sunda Islands including the Mentawai Islands , the surrounding archipelagos, the Nicobar Islands , a large part of the Philippines and many other archipelagos from Southeast Asia to New Guinea and from here over large parts of Micronesia to Eniwetok and Fiji -Islands .

Way of life

The Asiatic black rat lives mainly in and around localities and in agricultural areas. The animals live both on the ground and in buildings. They are generalists and very adaptable.

Systematics

The species status of the Asian house rat has long been controversial and it was considered the Asian form of the house rat ( Rattus rattus ). Apart from the nominate form, no subspecies are distinguished within the species , but it is possible that it comprises a complex of several closely related species. The phylogenetic separation from the house rat probably took place about 400,000 years ago, the common taxon separated from the lineage containing the Pacific rat ( Rattus exulans ) about 2.2 million years ago and from that containing the brown rat ( Rattus norvegicus ), about 2.9 million years ago.

Hazard and protection

The species is classified as “least concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) due to its large distribution area and high population numbers.

literature

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c Oriental House Council. In: Andrew T. Smith, Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. 2008, p. 272.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Rattus tanezumi in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012.2. Listed by: L. Heaney, S. Molur, 2008. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  3. ↑ a b Rattus tanezumi ( Memento of the original from February 1, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . In: Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.vertebrates.si.edu
  4. ^ A b Judith H. Robins, Patricia A. McLenachan, Matthew J. Phillips, Lauren Craig, Howard A. Ross, Elizabeth Matisoo-Smith: Dating of divergences within the Rattus genus phylogeny using whole mitochondrial genomes. In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. Vol. 49, No. 2, November 2008, ISSN  1055-7903 , pp. 460-466, doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2008.08.001 .

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