The Mentawai Archipelago rat (''Rattus lugens'') 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 the

Mentawai Islands Mentawai may refer to: * Mentawai Islands * Mentawai Strait * Mentawai people * Mentawai language The Mentawai language is an Austronesian language, spoken by the Mentawai people of the Mentawai Islands, West Sumatra, Indonesia. Dialects Acco ...

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 ...

, on the islands of Siberut,

Sipora Sipora (Indonesian: ''Sipora'' or sometimes spelled ''Sipura'') located off Sumatra in the West Sumatra Province of Indonesia, is the second-smallest and most developed of the four Mentawai Islands at only 651.55 km2. It had a population o ...

Pagai Utara North Pagai (Indonesian: ''Pagai Utara'') is the smallest of the four principal Mentawai Islands off the west coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. It is south of Sipora and north of South Pagai (or Pagai Selatan) Island. The population figure given f ...

(North Pagai island), and

Pagai Selatan Pagai is a village on the southeast coast of Tutuila Island, American Samoa. It is located on the edge of Faga'itua Bay, and in between the villages of Faga'itua and Alofau. Pagai is six miles east of Pago Pago Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harr ...

(South Pagai island).

References

* Baillie, J. 1996.
Rattus lugens

2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Downloaded on 19 July 2007. * Rattus Rats of Asia Endemic fauna of Indonesia Mentawai Islands Regency Rodents of Indonesia Vulnerable fauna of Asia Mammals described in 1903 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Rattus-stub