Great New Guinea small tooth rat
| Great New Guinea small tooth rat | ||||||||||||
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| Macruromys major | ||||||||||||
| Rümmler , 1935 |
The New Guinea Little Tooth Rat or Eastern Little Tooth Rat ( Macruromys major ) is a rodent in the subfamily of Old World mice (Murinae) that occurs in New Guinea .
features
As the German name suggests, the species is the larger of the two species in the genus New Guinea small tooth rats, with a head-to-body length of 225 to 263 mm, a tail length of 315 to 340 mm and a weight of around 350 g . It has 52 to 60 mm long hind feet and 13 to 19 mm long ears. In external appearance, this rodent resembles a rat or a mosaic-tailed giant rat (genus Uromys ). In contrast, the scales of the tail overlap in Macruromys major , the three short hairs per tail scale are in principle invisible and the rear molars are very small. The hair of the fur on the upper side is yellow-black with the darkest areas on the back and on the rump appearing so black-brown. On the underside, the hairs near the root are white and then gray, which results in a light gray color. The front two-thirds of the tail are gray-brown and the tip of the tail is white. The small tooth rat ( Macruromys elegans ), on the other hand, has a light yellow tail tip and the fur is soft, instead of slightly bristly. There are four teats in females .
distribution
The distribution area are mountains in the east of Western New Guinea (Indonesia) and Papua New Guinea . The species lives in regions that are 660 to 1900 meters above sea level. The great New Guinea little tooth rat lives in tropical mountain forests where it is often found in clearings or in the vicinity of streams and rivers.
Way of life
Due to the long vibrissae , it is believed that the species is nocturnal. The great New Guinea small tooth rat lives in underground burrows. All known specimens were caught on the ground. Further information on the behavior is not available.
Danger
The species is generally rare and clear declines in the population are difficult to determine. Overhunting for meat production leads to an increased rarity in certain regions. However, fossil evidence suggests that the New Guinea small tooth rat survived several population fluctuations. The total stock is considered stable. The IUCN lists the species as Least Concern .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): Mammal Species of the World . A taxonomic and geographic Reference . 3. Edition. 2 volumes. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 (English, Macruromys major ).
- ↑ a b c Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher Jr., Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 7 - Rodents II . Lynx Edicions, 2017, ISBN 978-84-16728-04-6 , pp. 691-692 (English).
- ↑ a b Macruromys major in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2016 Posted by: Aplin, K., 2016. Accessed March 1, 2020th