Hamiguitan hairy-tailed rat

The Hamiguitan hairy-tailed rat (Batomys hamiguitan) is one of five species of rodent in the genus Batomys. It is in the diverse family Muridae. This species is found only in the Philippines. is a yellow-brown animal with a long furry tail, weighs about 175 grams, and is related to several other species known in Central Mindanao, Dinagat Island and Luzon. It lives only in an area that's at least 950 meters high, and in dwarf mossy forests less than 10 square kilometers.

Hamiguitan hairy-tailed rat
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Genus: Batomys
Species:
B. hamiguitan
Binomial name
Batomys hamiguitan
Balete, Heaney, Rickart, Quidlat, & Ibanez, 2008

It was the last member of its genus to be discovered in May 2006.[2] According to team leader and lead author Danilo Balete, "Hamiguitan batomys is the first mammal to be described from Eastern Mindanao, and the first thought to live only in that area."

This species corroborates the hypothesis that the island of Mindanao has multiple centers of endemism, of which the southeastern highland of Mount Hamiguitan is one.

References
  1. Engelbrektsson, P. & Kennerley, R. (2017). "Batomys hamiguitan". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T45954108A120955590.
  2. Danilo S. Balete; Lawrence R. Heaney; Eric A. Rickart; Roselyn S. Quidlat & Jason C. Ibanez (2008). "A new species of Batomys (Mammalia: Muridae) from eastern Mindanao Island, Philippines". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 121 (4): 411–428. doi:10.2988/07-47.1.


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