305.

Laurie’s Moss Mouse

Pseudohydromys eleanorae

French: Souris-musaraigne d'Eleanor / German: Eleonora-Moosmaus / Spanish: Ratén de musgo de Laurie

Taxonomy. Pseudohydromys eleanorae K. M. Helgen & 1. E.Helgen, 2009,

“high northern slopes’ of Mt. Wilhelm (c.05°47’S, 145°01.5’E, Chimbu Province, Papua New Guinea ...), between 9000 and 10,000 feet (2740-3050 m).”

All known specimens of P. eleanorae were collected in 1950-1951 by F. Shaw Mayer. Previously confused with P. murinus . Referred by K. M. Helgen and L. E. Helgen to a murinus species group that also includes P. murinus and P. berniceae . Three other species of Psuedohydromys ( P. ellermani, P. fuscus, and P. murinus) are recorded from same general area. Monotypic.

Distribution. Found in a small area of mountainous terrain in Western Highlands and Chimbu provinces, Papua New Guinea, with records from slopes of the Hagen Range, Mt Giluwe, and Mt Wilhelm.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 70-80 mm, tail 79-88 mm, ear 9-11 mm, hindfoot 18-20 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Pseudohydromys is a taxonomically diverse group of small-bodied murines characterized by dense, velvety to plush fur; a variably narrowed and flattened head with small eyes and ears; head generally without contrasting pattern; vibrissae fine and elongate, extending past ears; eyes small to minute; narrow hindfeet, lacking webbing between digits and with claws on all digits; tail narrow and thinly furred, approximating combined length of head and body; mammae (when known) two on each side, both inguinal; cranium delicately built, with small molars reduced in number to two or fewer per quadrant. Members of the murinus species group have two molars perquadrant, relatively unreduced in size compared with those of other species groups; they also share a suite of special cranial traits. Laurie’s Moss Mouse is one of the smaller members of genus; fur is plain gray on upperparts and below, with no grizzling or whitespotting on rump, short and velvety; ears small and dark gray; uppersurfaces of feet unpigmented, with short,silvery hairs; tail averages 92% of combined length of head and body, pale but not conspicuously mottled, with 9-10 mm white tip.

Habitat. Recorded at elevations of probably 2240-3050 m. All records are from areas supporting primary evergreen upper montane rainforest.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List, but restriction of subsistence agricultural activity to elevations below 2500 m in this part of Papua New Guinea, coupled with lack of any major resource developments in this area, suggests a high degree of habitat security.

Bibliography. Flannery (1995b), Helgen & Helgen (2009), Jackson & Woolley (1993), Laurie (1952), Musser & Carleton (2005).