650.

Indochinese White-bellied

Rat

Niviventer fulvescens

French: Rat noisette / German: Kastanien-Weiftbauchratte / Spanish: Rata de vientre blanco de Indochina

Other common names: Chestnut White-bellied Rat, Indochinese Niviventer, Indomalayan Niviventer

Taxonomy. Mus fulvescens Gray, 1847,

“Nepal.”

Recent phylogenetic and morphological analyses split N. fulvescens into three species, N. fulvescens, N. huang, and N. bukit that are recognized here even though populations in Thailand, Cambodia, and Laosstill need to be assessed and distributional limits need clarification. A fourth species, N. ling, was also recognized but is included in N. huang here, pending further studies to validate it. Many subspecies of N. fulvescens have been recognized in the past, but due to taxonomic confusion, they are not recognized here.

Distribution. N Pakistan, NW & NE India, Nepal, Bhutan, SC China (E Xizang & NW Yunnan), Myanmar, and N Vietnam; possibly also in SW Yunnan and Thailand, although range limits are still unknown.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 131-172 mm, tail 160-221 mm, ear 20-23 mm, hindfoot 28-32 mm; weight 60-135 g. The Indochinese White-bellied Rat is small, graceful, and a little larger than the South China White-bellied Rat ( N. huang). Pelage is soft. Dorsum is bright ruby reddish, with deep brown or chestnutstripe on dorsal part of foot, almost reaching white fingers, which is thicker and darker than on the South China White-bellied Rat. Venter is pure white, without any chest or chinmarking. Ears are dark brown;vibrissae are long. Tail is ¢.148:5% of head-body length,flexible, smooth, and unicolored (with barely noticeable paler ventral stripe, rest of tail dark brown) or partially bicolored (black ventrally on proximal one-third oftail, except for brown tip). Feet are long and slender, with five digits, fifth reduced with small claw. Skull is oblong and narrow, being functionally indistinguishable from the South China White-bellied Rat. There are four pairs of mammae: one pectoral, one post-axillary, one abdominal, and one inguinal.

Habitat. Evergreen broadleaved forests, shrubs, rocks, and near water from sea level to elevations of ¢.2600 m. In south-eastern Asia, the Indochinese White-bellied Rat is found in tropical broadleaf forests and evergreen forests, grass and bushland, and near rivers and streams.

Food and Feeding. The Indochinese White-bellied Rat eats seeds, berries,insects, and possibly green vegetation.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The Indochinese White-bellied Rat is nocturnal and mostly terrestrial, sometimes climbing vines..

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List (including N. huang and N. bukit). The Indochinese White-bellied Rat has a wide distribution and presumably large overall population;it occurs in protected areas. Its only major threats are habitat degradation and forest clearing, but it tolerates some habitat modification. It is listed as a pest under in the Schedule V of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Bibliography. Balakirev & Rozhnov (2010), Balakirev et al. (2011), Francis (2008), Jing Meidong et al. (2007), Lu Liang et al. (2015), Molur et al. (2005), Musser (1981a), Musser & Carleton (2005), Musser et al. (2016), Smith & Yan Xie (2008).