This is the list of rodents of

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 ...

. Australia has a large number of indigenous rodents, all from 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 ...

. The "Old endemics" group are member of tribe Hydromyini. They have reached Australasia between 11 - 9 million years ago from asia. And the "New endemics" group are member of tribe

rattini Rattini is a very large, diverse tribe of muroid rodents in the subfamily Murinae. They are found throughout Asia and Australasia, with a few species ranging into Europe and northern Africa. The most well-known members of this group are the true r ...

. They are presumed to have arrived more recently between 4 - 3 million years from Asia. The

black rat The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...

, brown rat,

Pacific rat The Polynesian rat, Pacific rat or little rat (''Rattus exulans''), known to the Māori as ''kiore'', is the third most widespread species of rat in the world behind the brown rat and black rat. The Polynesian rat originated in Southeast Asia, an ...

and

house mouse The house mouse (''Mus musculus'') is a small mammal of the order Rodentia, characteristically having a pointed snout, large rounded ears, and a long and almost hairless tail. It is one of the most abundant species of the genus '' Mus''. Althoug ...

were accidentally introduced to Australia with European settlement, as was a small population of the five-lined palm squirrel near

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

Old "endemics" *

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 ...

* White-footed rabbit-rat^†, ''Conilurus albipes'' - extinct *

Brush-tailed rabbit rat The brush-tailed rabbit rat (''Conilurus penicillatus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Taxonomy The brush-tailed rabbit-rat is one of three ''Conilurus'' species that were extant ...

, ''Conilurus penicillatus'' * Rakali (water rat), ''Hydromys chrysogaster'' *

Forrest's mouse The Forrest's mouse (''Leggadina forresti''), or desert short-tailed mouse, is a small species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is a widespread but sparsely distributed species found across arid and semi-arid inland Australia, commonly found ...

, ''Leggadina forresti'' * Lakeland Downs mouse, ''Leggadina lakedownensis'' *

Lesser stick-nest rat The lesser stick-nest rat or white-tipped stick-nest rat (''Leporillus apicalis'') is an extinct species of rodent in the family (biology), family Muridae. It lived in central Australia where it built nests of sticks that accumulate over years a ...

^†, ''Leporillus apicalis'' - extinct *

Greater stick-nest rat The greater stick-nest rat, also known as the house-building rat and wopilkara (''Leporillus conditor'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. They are about the size of a small rabbit and construct large nests of interwoven sticks. Onc ...

, ''Leporillus conditor'' *

Broad-toothed mouse The broad-toothed rat (''Mastacomys fuscus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. Distribution and habitat It is found only in South-eastern Australia. In Victoria live specimens have been caught in the Snowfields, Great Dividing Range ...

, ''Mastacomys fuscus'' * Grassland melomys, ''Melomys burtoni'' *

Cape York melomys The Cape York mosaic-tailed rat, or Cape York melomys (''Melomys capensis'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Australia, on the Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far ...

, ''Melomys capensis'' * Fawn-footed melomys, ''Melomys cervinipes'' *

Bramble Cay melomys The Bramble Cay melomys, or Bramble Cay mosaic-tailed rat (''Melomys rubicola''), is a recently extinct species of rodent in the family Muridae and subfamily Murinae. It was an endemic species of the isolated Bramble Cay, a low-lying vegetate ...

^†, ''Melomys rubicola'' - extinct * Black-footed tree-rat, ''Mesembriomys gouldi'' * Golden-backed tree-rat, ''Mesembriomys macrurus'' *

Spinifex hopping mouse The spinifex hopping mouse (''Notomys alexis''), also known as the tarkawara or tarrkawarra, occurs throughout the central and western Australian arid zones, occupying both spinifex-covered sand flats and stabilised sand dunes, and loamy mulga ...

, ''Notomys alexis'' * Short-tailed hopping mouse^†, ''Notomys amplus'' - extinct * Northern hopping mouse, ''Notomys aquilo'' * Fawn hopping mouse, ''Notomys cervinus'' * Dusky hopping mouse, ''Notomys fuscus'' * Long-tailed hopping mouse^†, ''Notomys longicaudatus'' - extinct *

Big-eared hopping mouse The big-eared hopping mouse (''Notomys macrotis'') is an extinct species of mouse, which lived in the Moore River area of south-western Australia. The big-eared hopping mouse was a small, rat-sized animal resembling a tiny kangaroo. It had large ...

^†, ''Notomys macrotis'' - extinct *

Mitchell's hopping mouse Mitchell's hopping mouse (''Notomys mitchellii'') also known as the pankot, is the largest extant member of the genus ''Notomys'', weighing between . ''N. mitchellii'' is a bipedal rodent with large back legs, similar to a jerboa or kangaroo rat. ...

, ''Notomys mitchelli'' * Darling Downs hopping mouse^†, ''Notomys mordax'' - extinct *

Great hopping mouse The great hopping mouse (''Notomys robustus'') is an extinct species of mammal native to Australia. It is known only from skulls found in owl pellets in the Flinders Ranges The Flinders Ranges are the largest mountain range in South Australi ...

^†, ''Notomys robustus''- extinct *

Prehensile-tailed rat The prehensile-tailed rat (''Pogonomys mollipilosus'') is a species of rodent that can be found in New Guinea and Australia; it occurs in the tropical rainforest of Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Austr ...

, ''Pogonomys mollipilosus'' * Ash-grey mouse, ''Pseudomys albocinereus'' *

Silky mouse The silky mouse (''Pseudomys apodemoides'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only in Australia. Description The body and head of silky mice tend to be between 65-80 millimeters, with their tail length ranging from 90- ...

, ''Pseudomys apodemoides'' *

Plains rat The plains rat ''(Pseudomys australis)'', also known as the palyoora, plains mouse and eastern mouse, is a conilurine rodent native to arid and semi-arid Australia. Referred to as the ''pallyoora'' or ''yarlie'' by Indigenous groups, the plains ...

, ''Pseudomys australis'' *

Bolam's mouse Bolam's mouse (''Pseudomys bolami'') is a species of nocturnal, burrowing rodent in the family Muridae that inhabits the semi arid and southern arid regions of Australia.Moseby, K. E., & Read, J. L. (1998). Population dynamics and movement patt ...

, ''Pseudomys bolami'' *

Kakadu pebble-mound mouse The Kakadu pebble-mound mouse (''Pseudomys calabyi'') is a rodent native to Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Aus ...

, ''Pseudomys calabyi'' *

Western pebble-mound mouse Western pebble-mound mouse or Ngadji, species ''Pseudomys chapmani'', is a burrowing and mound building rodent in the family Muridae. They occur in the Pilbara, a remote region in the northwest of Australia. Taxonomy The species was describ ...

, ''Pseudomys chapmani'' * Little native mouse, ''Pseudomys delicatulus'' *

Desert mouse The desert mouse (''Pseudomys desertor''), also known as the brown desert mouse, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is endemic to Australia. The first desert mouse specimen was collected by Australian zoologist Gerard Krefft on t ...

, ''Pseudomys desertor'' *

Shark Bay mouse Gould's mouse (''Pseudomys gouldii''), also known as the Shark Bay mouse and djoongari in the Pintupi and Luritja languages, is a species of rodent in the murid family. Once ranging throughout Australia from Western Australia to New South Wale ...

, ''Pseudomys fieldi'' *

Smoky mouse The smoky mouse (''Pseudomys fumeus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae native to southeastern Australia. It was first described in 1934 and its species name is Latin for "smoky". As its name suggests, it is a grey-furred mouse, dark ...

, ''Pseudomys fumeus'' * Blue-grey mouse^†, ''Pseudomys glaucus'' - extinct *

Gould's mouse Gould's mouse (''Pseudomys gouldii''), also known as the Shark Bay mouse and djoongari in the Pintupi and Luritja languages, is a species of rodent in the murid family. Once ranging throughout Australia from Western Australia to New South Wales, ...

^†, ''Pseudomys gouldi'' - extinct * Eastern chestnut mouse, ''Pseudomys gracilicaudatus'' *

Sandy inland mouse The sandy inland mouse (''Pseudomys hermannsburgensis'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. Also known as the Hermannsburg (Mission) false-mouse or Hermannsburg mouse, it is endemic to Australia and found widely yet sparsely through ...

, ''Pseudomys hermannsburgensis'' *

Long-tailed mouse The long-tailed mouse (''Pseudomys higginsi'') is a native Australian mammal in the Order Rodentia and the Family Muridae. It is found only on the island of Tasmania. The long-tailed mouse is an omnivore that feeds on insects and a range of plan ...

, ''Pseudomys higginsi'' * Central pebble-mound mouse, ''Pseudomys johnsoni'' * Kimberley mouse, ''Pseudomys laborifex'' * Western chestnut mouse, ''Pseudomys nanus'' *

New Holland mouse The New Holland mouse (''Pseudomys novaehollandiae'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It was first described by George Waterhouse in 1843. It vanished from view for over a century before its rediscovery in Ku-ring-gai Chase Nationa ...

, ''Pseudomys novaehollandiae'' * Western mouse, ''Pseudomys occidentalis'' * Hastings River mouse, ''Pseudomys oralis'' * Pilliga mouse, ''Pseudomys pilligaensis'' *

Eastern pebble-mound mouse The country mouse (''Pseudomys patrius'') also known as the pebble-mound mouse or eastern pebble mound mouse AUSTRALIANFAUNA.COM 190Eastern Pebble-mound Mouse (Pseudomys patrius) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It lives only in Au ...

, ''Pseudomys patrius'' * Heath mouse, ''Pseudomys shortridgei'' *

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'' *

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'' *

False water rat ''Xeromys myoides'', also known as the water mouse, marine mouse, mangrove mouse, false water rat, manngay and yirrkoo, is a species of rodent native to waterways of Australia and Papua New Guinea. Taxonomy A description of the species was pu ...

, ''Xeromys myoides'' * Common rock rat, ''Zyzomys argurus'' * Arnhem Land rock rat, ''Zyzomys maini'' * Carpentarian rock rat, ''Zyzomys palatalis'' *

Central rock rat The central rock rat (''Zyzomys pedunculatus''), also known as the central thick-tailed rock-rat, Macdonnell Range rock-rat, and Australian native mouse, is a Critically Endangered species of rodent in the family Muridae endemic to Australia. De ...

, ''Zyzomys pedunculatus'' * Kimberley rock rat, ''Zyzomys woodwardi''

New "endemics" *

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 ...

Dusky rat The dusky rat (''Rattus colletti'') is an indigenous species of rodent in the family Muridae found in Australia. Name Kunwinjku people of western Arnhem Land call this animal ''mulbbu'', a name also applied to other rodent species. It was firs ...

, ''Rattus colletti'' * Bush rat, ''Rattus fuscipes'' *

Cape York rat The Cape York rat (''Rattus leucopus'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in southern New Guinea, in both Indonesia and Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu ...

, ''Rattus leucopus'' * Swamp rat, ''Rattus lutreolus'' *

Canefield rat The dusky field rat (''Rattus sordidus''), also known as the canefield rat, is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. In Australia it is found in northern Queensland and along the e ...

, ''Rattus sordidus'' *

Pale field rat The pale field rat (''Rattus tunneyi'') is a small rat endemic to Australia. It is a nocturnal and herbivorous rodent that resides throughout the day in shallow burrows made in loose sand. Once widespread, the range has become greatly reduced a ...

, ''Rattus tunneyi'' * Long-haired rat, ''Rattus villosissimus''

Introduced

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 ...

House mouse The house mouse (''Mus musculus'') is a small mammal of the order Rodentia, characteristically having a pointed snout, large rounded ears, and a long and almost hairless tail. It is one of the most abundant species of the genus '' Mus''. Althoug ...

^¤, ''Mus musculus'' *

^¤, ''Rattus exulans'' * Brown rat^¤, ''Rattus norvegicus'' *

Black rat The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...

^¤, ''Rattus Rattus''

Sciuridae

* Five-lined palm squirrel^¤, ''Funambulus pennantii'' * Grey squirrel^¤, ''Sciurus carolinensis'' - now extinct in Australia

Notes

^† Extinct ^¤ Introduced * Several of these species are not actually

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

, but to the Australasian realm, which includes

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

and eastern

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 ...

. The headings "Old Endemics" and "New Endemics" are used here in that sense (after StrahanStrahan, R. (ed.) (1995) ''The Mammals of Australia'', Revised (second) Edition, Reed New Holland, Sydney ).

References

External links

Species listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:List of rodents of Australia

Rodents 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 nat ...

Old "endemics" *

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 ...

New "endemics" *

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 ...

Introduced

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 ...

Sciuridae

Notes

See also

References

External links