757.

Palawan Mountain Rat

Palawanomys furvus

French: Rat de Palawan / German: Palawan-Ratte / Spanish: Rata de montana de Palawan

Other common names: Palawan Soft-furred Mountain Rat

Taxonomy. Palawanomys furvus Musser & Newcomb, 1983,

Mount Mantalingajan, 4500 ft (= 1372 m), Brooke’s Point Municipality, Palawan Island, Philippines.

Four specimens of this rat, originally collected in 1962, remained undescribed until G. G. Musser and C. Newcomb in 1983 described them under Palawanomys and compared them with some species of Rattus from the Sunda Shelf. Affinity of P. furvus to other murids of the region has to be assessed with molecular studies. It is possibly more related to the murid fauna of the Sunda Shelf than to other genera from the oceanic Philippines. Palawanomys furvus is one of three Muridae endemic to the Greater Palawan Faunal Region; Maxomys panglioma and Chiropodomys calamianus are the other two. Monotypic.

Distribution. Mt Mantalingajan, Palawan I, Philippines.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 135-158 mm, tail 149-162 mm, ear 18-19 mm, hindfoot 31-34 mm; weight 86-120 g. The Palawan Mountain Rat is medium-sized, with long, thick, and glossy fur. Hindfeet are long and narrow. Upperparts are chocolate brown, and underparts are paler, dark grayish brown. White-tipped hairs occur on chest, which form distinct white patchesin some specimens. Demarcation between upperparts and underparts is inconspicuous. Ears are blackish brown and densely covered with short brown hair. Tail is as long as head-body length orslightly longer and is chocolate brown, with short stiff hairs. Forefeet and hindfeet are brown above and chocolate brown on palmar and plantar surfaces. Claws are unpigmented. Cranium is small, rostrum moderately long and wide, braincase elongate, and molar teeth large and chunky. Females have four pairs of mammae.

Habitat. Steep montane and mossy forests on ultrabasic soils at elevations of 1500— 1950 m.

Food and Feeding. Palawan Mountain Rats forage primarily on the ground.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Palawan Mountain Rat are mainly nocturnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Population status of the Palawan Mountain Rat is poorly known. They are common in currently stable habitat on Mount Mantalingajan, but extensive mining is planned there.

Bibliography. Boitani et al. (2006), Esselstyn et al. (2004), Heaney, Balete et al. (1998), Heaney, Dolar et al. (2010), Kennerley (2016b), Musser & Carleton (2005), Musser & Heaney (1992), Musser & Newcomb (1983).