''Uromys'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

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 ...

s found in

Melanesia Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Va ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. They are known as the giant naked-tailed rats. There are eleven species in the genus, with the most recent described in 2017.

Species

Giant naked-tailed rat The giant naked-tailed rat (''Uromys anak'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in West Papua, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. It lives in tropical forests, wetlands, and in degraded forests. Names It is known as abben ...

, ''Uromys anak'' Thomas, 1907 *

Biak giant rat The Biak Island uromys or Biak giant rat (''Uromys boeadii'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is known only from a single specimen collected on the Indonesian island of Biak Biak is an island located in Cenderawasih Bay near ...

, ''Uromys boeadii'' Groves & Flannery, 1994 *

Giant white-tailed rat The giant white-tailed rat (''Uromys caudimaculatus'') is an Australian rodent native to tropical rainforest of north Queensland, with subspecies occurring in New Guinea and the Aru Islands. It is one of the largest rodents in Australia, reaching ...

, ''Uromys caudimaculatus'' Krefft, 1867 *

Emma's giant rat Emma's uromys or Emma's giant rat (''Uromys emmae'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is only known from Owi Island, a small island of the size of about one square kilometer some 5km South of Biak Island, Indonesia Indone ...

, ''Uromys emmae'' Groves & Flannery, 1994 *

Masked white-tailed rat The masked white-tailed rat (''Uromys hadrourus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Australia, in north-east Queensland. Descriptive English common names for this species include Masked White-tailed Rat and Tho ...

, ''Uromys hadrourus'' Winter, 1983 *

Emperor rat The emperor rat (''Uromys imperator'') is a large species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. It is classified as critically endangered by the IUCN The International Union for C ...

, ''Uromys imperator'' Thomas, 1888 * Bismarck giant rat, ''Uromys neobritannicus'' Tate & Archbold, 1935 *

Guadalcanal rat The Guadalcanal rat (''Uromys porculus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It was found only in the Solomon Islands. Since this species was collected between 1886 and 1888 it has not been seen again. It is possibly extinct. Descrip ...

, ''Uromys porculus'' Thomas, 1904 * King rat, ''Uromys rex'' Thomas, 1888 *

Great Key Island giant rat The Great Key Island giant rat, or Great Key Island uromys (''Uromys siebersi'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is known only from Great Key Island, Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country ...

, ''Uromys siebersi'' Thomas, 1923 *

Vangunu giant rat The Vangunu giant rat (''Uromys vika''), locally known as the vika, is a giant arboreal species of rodent in the family Muridae. The rat was discovered in the island of Vangunu in the Solomon Islands in 2015, after years of searching based on loc ...

, ''Uromys vika'' Lavery & Judge, 2017Lavery, T. H.; Judge, H.; A new species of giant rat (Muridae, ''Uromys'') from Vangunu, Solomon Islands, ''Journal of Mammalogy'', gyx116, https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyx116

References

Rodent genera Taxa named by Wilhelm Peters Extant Pleistocene first appearances {{Murinae-stub