Dollman's melomys (''Melomys dollmani'') is a species of
rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...
from the family
Muridae
The Muridae, or murids, are either the largest or second-largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 870 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia.
...
. It lives in the eastern highlands of
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...
at an elevation of at least and on the slopes of
Mount Hagen
Mount Hagen () is the third largest city in Papua New Guinea, with a population of 46,250. It is the capital of the Western Highlands, Papua New Guinea, Western Highlands Province and is located in the large fertile Wahgi Valley in central mainlan ...
and
Mount Sisa.
However, it is not found east of the Okapa area.
[ It is an arboreal species occurring in montane secondary and degraded forest, preferring moist tropical environments.] Formerly considered to be a subspecies of the black-tailed mosaic-tailed rat, the Dollman's melomys is also often listed as its binomial synonym, ''Melomys gracilis''. The melomys is listed as Least Concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been evaluated and categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as not being a focus of wildlife conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wil ...
by the IUCN Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...
due to its wide range, lack of threats, and tolerance of disturbance.
See also
* Black-tailed mosaic-tailed rat
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2600774
Melomys
Rodents of New Guinea
Rodents of Papua New Guinea
Mammals described in 1935
Taxa named by Hans Rümmler