''Phloeomys'', the slender-tailed cloud rats, is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

of large

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 n ...

s in the family Muridae. Both

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

in this genus are

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 else ...

to the island of

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Although their tail is covered by hairs, it is considerably less dense and shorter than in the rarer bushy-tailed cloud rats (genus ''Crateromys'') that also inhabit the Philippines.

Species

''Phloeomys'' contains two species, but the taxonomic limits between them are not fully resolved. * Southern Luzon giant (or slender-tailed) cloud rat (''Phloeomys cumingi'') * Northern Luzon giant (or slender-tailed) cloud rat (''Phloeomys pallidus'')

References

Rodents of the Philippines Rodent genera Taxa named by George Robert Waterhouse Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endemic fauna of the Philippines {{Murinae-stub

Species

See also

References