''Paraleptomys'' is a genus of rodent from

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. It is considered part of the New Guinea Old Endemics, meaning it was part of the first wave of

murine rodent The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. Members of this subfamily are called murines. In terms of species richness, this subfamily is larger than all mammal families ex ...

s to colonize the island. Members of the genus are similar to those in ''

Leptomys ''Leptomys'' is a genus of rodent endemic to New Guinea. It is considered part of the New Guinea Old Endemics, meaning it was part of the first wave of murine rodents to colonize the island. Leptomys are seen to have minimal adaptations to thei ...

'' but differ in that they do not have elongated hind feet or a third molar. Little is known of the two species' biology.

Species

*Genus ''Paraleptomys'' **

Northern water rat The northern water rat (''Paraleptomys rufilatus'') is an endangered species of rodent in the family Muridae found in the highlands of New Guinea. Distribution The northern water rat is a rodent of the genus ''Paraleptomys'' appearing on New Gu ...

(''Paraleptomys rufilatus'') - Found in the Cyclops mountains of north-central New Guinea **

Short-haired water rat The short-haired water rat (''Paraleptomys wilhelmina'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu ...

(''Paraleptomys wilhelmina'') - found in western and central New Guinea

References

Rodent genera Taxa named by George Henry Hamilton Tate {{Murinae-stub