Melomys leucogaster (Jentink, 1908) . Nova Guinea, 9:3.

TYPE LOCALITY: New Guinea, S Irian Jaya, Lorentz River, Alkmaar, 300 m .

DISTRIBUTION: New Guinea; S side of Central Cordillera from the type locality in Irian Jaya east to E Papua New Guinea on the mainland (see map in Flannery, 1990b:234); also Yule Isl off the coast of E Papua New Guinea in Central Prov., Conflict Isis, and Rossel Isl in Louisiade Arch., Moluccas, Seram and Talaud Isis.

SYNONYMS: arcium, caurinus, fulgens, talipes, talaudium .

COMMENTS: A close morphological relative of M. rufescens . Melomys leucogaster is one of the few New Guinea species that also occurs on archipelagos to the SE and W of that island continent. The population on Rossel Isl was listed as M. arcium by Laurie and Hill (1954), and that on Seram and the Talauds as M. fulgens .