A review of Microhydromys (Rodentia, Murinae), with description of a new species from southern New Guinea

Related Titles

Series: American Museum novitates, no. 3676

By

Helgen, Kristofer M.

Leary, Tanya.
Aplin, K. P. (Kenneth Peter), 1958-

Type

Book

Material

Published material

Publication info

New York, NY, American Museum of Natural History, c2010

Notes

Caption title.

"March 4, 2010."

The murine rodent genus Microhydromys Tate and Archbold, 1941, includes the smallest of the native rodents of New Guinea and is the rarest Australo-Papuan rodent genus preserved in world museums. We discuss the morphological characteristics of Microhydromys and diagnose two species in the genus: M. richardsoni Tate and Archbold, 1941, distributed over northern New Guinea, and M. argenteus, n. sp., recorded from three localities in southern New Guinea. The only other species previously classified in the genus--Microhydromys musseri Flannery, 1989--is re-allocated to the genus Pseudohydromys Rümmler, 1934. The little available information relating to their biology indicates the species of Microhydromys to be terrestrial inhabitants of foothill and lower montane forest formations and probably naturally rare in those environments.

Subjects

Classification , Mammals , Microhydromys , Microhydromys argenteus , Muridae , New Guinea , Rodents

Call Number

QL1 .A436 no.3676 2010

Language

English

Identifiers

OCLC: 547616867