| Buka Island mosaic-tailed rat | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Muridae |
| Genus: | Melomys |
| Species: | M. spechti |
| Binomial name | |
| Melomys spechti Flannery and Wickler, 1990 | |
The Buka Island mosaic-tailed rat or Buka Island melomys (Melomys spechti) is a species of rat in Oceania. [1]
It is endemic to Buka Island, in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in northeastern Papua New Guinea.
The Solomon Islands rain forests are a terrestrial ecoregion covering the Solomon Islands archipelago.
The dusky mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae.
Melomys is a genus of rodents in the family Muridae. Members of this genus live in the wet habitats of northern Australia, New Guinea, Torres Strait Islands and islands of the Indonesian archipelago.
The fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat, or fawn-footed melomys is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found along eastern coastal regions of Australia.
The Manusela mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Indonesia. It lives in the rainforests on the island of Seram in Indonesia. Specimens of it weigh 66.5g and have a head and body length of 118-135mm and a tail length of 126–140mm.
The black-tailed mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to the island of New Guinea.
The Solomon Archipelago is a terrestrial ecoregion and marine ecoregion in the Pacific Ocean. It includes the tropical ocean waters surrounding most of the Solomon Islands archipelago, and includes Bougainville Island and Buka Island of Papua New Guinea and their surrounding waters.
Bannister's rat, or great Key Island mosaic-tailed rat, or great Key Island melomys or great Kai Island melomys is a species of rodent of the genus Melomys. It is endemic to the Kai Besar, one of the islands which are part of the Maluku Islands, Indonesia.
The Yamdena mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rat belonging to the family Muridae. It was first described in 1995 from specimens found on Yamdena Island in Indonesia. No other examples of this species have been found; as a result very little is known about it. IUCN lists it as Data Deficient.
The Rossel Island melomys is a species of rodent from the family Muridae. It is endemic to Rossel Island in Papua New Guinea, but Flannery (1955) presumed that "it did exist previously on other islands of the group, but has become extinct on all except Rossel." For many years it was seen as a subspecies of the white-bellied mosaic-tailed rat, but is now considered a distinct species. It is listed as data deficient by the IUCN Red List in light of little information on "population status, ecological requirements, and threats". The Rossel Island melomys has not been officially recorded since 1956, but its habitat is still in good condition. The IUCN lists determining population status of the melomys as a "high priority".
The Pavel's Seram mosaic-tailed rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only on the south coast of the island of Seram in Indonesia. At one time it was thought to be a subspecies of the black-tailed mosaic-tailed rat but in 2005, Musser and Carleton raised it to full species level. The IUCN has insufficient information on which to assess its conservation status so it is listed as "data deficient".
The Manus Island mosaic-tailed rat or Manus melomys is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to the island of Manus in Papua New Guinea where it occurs in forest habitats and is largely arboreal.
The short-tailed Talaud mosaic-tailed rat or the short-tailed Talaud melomys is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Karakelong and Salebabu in the Talaud Islands in Indonesia where it occurs in forest habitats. The long-tailed Talaud mosaic-tailed rat is also present on the islands and the shorter tail of this species means that it is likely to be mainly terrestrial whereas M. talaudium is largely arboreal.
The long-tailed Talaud mosaic-tailed rat or the long-tailed Talaud melomys is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Karakelong and Salebabu in the Talaud Islands in Indonesia where it occurs in forest habitats. It is morphologically similar to the white-bellied mosaic-tailed rat and was at one time considered to be a subspecies but is now recognised as a distinct species. The short-tailed mosaic-tailed rat is also present on the islands and the shorter tail of that species means that it is likely to be mainly terrestrial whereas M. talaudium is largely arboreal.
The Papua grassland mosaic-tailed rat, also known as the grassland melomys, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to the island of New Guinea where it is present from sea level to altitudes of about 2,200 metres (7,200 ft). It inhabits grassland, gardens and other disturbed areas.
The Snow Mountains grassland mosaic-tailed rat, also known as the Snow Mountains grassland melomys, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to the mountainous west part of the island of New Guinea, where its range extends from Lake Habbema to the Baliem Valley, in Papua Province, Indonesia. It is present at altitudes between 1,600 and 2,200 metres above sea level. It is found in grassland and other disturbed areas.
The Seram long-tailed mosaic-tailed rat, also known as the Seram long-tailed melomys, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only on the south coast of the island of Seram in Indonesia. At one time it was thought to be a subspecies of the white-bellied mosaic-tailed rat but was subsequently raised to full species level. It differs from that species in having a much longer, scale-free tail with a calloused tip which is likely to be prehensile and used while climbing trees.
The Riama mosaic-tailed rat, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only on the island of Riama in Indonesia, a small island to the west of Selaru in the Tanimbar Islands. Very little is known about this species, but it may also be present on some of the other islands in this group.
Kilu Cave is a paleoanthropological site located on Buka Island in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. Kilu Cave is located at the base of a limestone cliff, 65 m (213 ft) from the modern coastline. With evidence for human occupation dating back to 30,000 years, Kilu Cave is the earliest known site for human occupation in the Solomon Islands archipelago. The site is the oldest proof of paleolithic people navigating the open ocean i.e. navigating without land in sight. To travel from Nissan island to Buka requires crossing of at least 60 kilometers of open sea. The presence of paleolithic people at Buka therefore is at the same time evidence for the oldest and the longest paleolithic sea travel known so far.
Hydromyini is a very large, diverse tribe of muroid rodents in the subfamily Murinae. They are the dominant native rodents in Australasia and one of only two native rodent groups there, the other being the R. fuscipes group of the genus Rattus in the tribe Rattini. They are also found in parts of Southeast Asia.