The alpine woolly rat (''Mallomys gunung'') is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

in the family

Muridae The Muridae, or murids, are the largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 1,383 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. The name Muridae come ...

. It is found only in West Papua,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. It is found only at high elevations, has an extent of occurrence less than 5,000 km², and is known from only two localities (although may be present at more). The combination of hunting, predation, and slow breeding means that the population size is probably declining (has certainly declined substantially according to the Holocene fossil records). This species is very likely to be increasingly affected by global warming, which increases fire frequency and is causing the extent of habitat to decline. When specimens were brought to a museum the female rats were pregnant with only one baby, so it is assumed that the rat gives birth to only one offspring at a time. Diet Because very little is known about the Alpine woolly rat, its diet is assumed to be similar to that of a typical wild rats, barring climate variations. The Alpine woolly rat mainly eats plants, seeds and various small animals.

References

* Mallomys Mammals of Western New Guinea Mammals described in 1989 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Rodents of New Guinea {{Murinae-stub