294.

Brass’s Brush Mouse

Pogonomelomys brassi

French: Pogonomys de Brass / German: Brass-Mosaikschwanzratte / Spanish: Raton de cepillo de Brass

Other common names: Brass's Pogonomelomys, Gray Pogonomelomys

Taxonomy. Pogonomelomys bruinii brassi Tate & Archbold, 1941,

“Oroville Camp, Upper Fly River, 30 miles above d’Albertis Junction; altitude 60 meters.”

The exact relationships of Pogonomelomys within Hydromyini are uncertain, and further genetic studies are needed. P. brassi was originally described as a subspecies of P. bruynii, but is here recognized as a distinct species. Monotypic.

Distribution. SC New Guinea Descriptive notes. Head—body 173-180 mm, tail 190-197 mm, ear 9 mm, hindfoot 33-34 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Brass’s Brush Mouse is a large species of Pogonomelomys . Pelage is shorter and stiffer than that of Shaw Mayer’s Brush Mouse ( P. mayeri). Dorsal pelage is grayish brown rather than red, being lighter on the sides; ventral pelage is pure white. Feet are very broad and white, with a brown streak dorsally on hindfoot. Ears are fuscous. Tail is long (109%of head—body length), fuscous throughout, with a scaleless and dorsally prehensile tip. Skull is broad and well arched in profile compared with that of Bruijn’s Brush Mouse (P. bruijnii). There are two pairs of mammae, both inguinal.

Habitat. Lowland tropical moist gallery and hill forests, atelevations from sea level to 600 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Brass’s Brush Mouse is probably arboreal, nesting in tree hollows.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Brass’s Brush Mouse has a relatively wide distribution and is not known to be facing any major threats, although it is sensitive to human disturbance. Virtually nothing is known of this species, and further research is needed in order fully to understand its natural history and evolution, and to detect any potential threats.

Bibliography. Flannery (1995b), Helgen (2007a), Helgen et al. (2017), Menzies (1990), Musser & Carleton (2005), Steppan & Schenk (2017).