DOCSLIB.ORG

Philippine Rats: a New Species of Crateromys from Dinagat Island

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Philippine Rats: a New Species of Crateromys from Dinagat Island AMERICAN MUSEUM Novitates PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY CENTRAL PARK WEST AT 79TH STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y. 10024 Number 2821, pp. 1-25, figs. 1-1 1, tables 1-4 August 5, 1985 Philippine Rats: A New Species of Crateromys from Dinagat Island GUY G. MUSSER,I LAWRENCE R. HEANEY,2 AND DIOSCORO S. RABOR3 ABSTRACT Crateromys australis, new species, is described zon, and the smaller C. paulus, the only native from one specimen collected on Dinagat, a small murid recorded from Ilin Island. A discussion of island north of Mindanao, Republic of the Phil- the three species is set against the native mammals ippines. The new rat is contrasted with the larger- of Dinagat and the native Philippine murids. bodied C. schadenbergi, which is endemic to Lu- INTRODUCTION The Philippine Archipelago is one of the Crateromys is endemic to the Philippine island groups east ofthe Sunda Shelfin which Islands. For more than eighty years it was the insular distributions of rats and mice are thought to be monotypic, consisting of the still poorly known, the morphological and spectacular C. schadenbergi from the high- ecological traits of the species are inade- lands of northern Luzon (Meyer, 1896; Tay- quately documented, and the phylogenetic lor, 1934). In 1981, Musser and Gordon de- relationships among them are confused. We scribed C. paulus from Ilin Island, just south provide new information about the morpho- of Mindoro. Our results presented here doc- logical and insular diversity within one group ument a third species. We describe it and of those rats, and about the overall species discuss its relationship to the other Cratero- diversity of murids in the Archipelago by mys and to the mammals known from Dina- naming and describing a new species of Cra- gat Island. We also discuss the three species teromys from Dinagat Island in the southern of Crateromys in a framework formed by the Philippines. distribution of murid rodents native to the I Archbold Curator, Department of Mammalogy, American Museum of Natural History, New York. 2Assistant Professor, Museum ofZoology and Division ofBiological Sciences, University ofMichigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan. 3College of Forestry, University of the Philippines, College, Laguna 3720, Republic of the Philippines. Copyright © American Museum of Natural History 1985 ISSN 0003-0082 / Price $2.80 2 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES NO. 2821 * ..$ c AS .i - ;..3 t; It FIG. 1. Crateromys schadenbergi. Melanistic adult male (USNM 102546) from Mount Data on Luzon Island. Philippine Islands. Among endemic Philip- similar to those of Batomys and Carpomys pine murids, species of Crateromys are most in morphologies of skins, skulls, and denti- 1985 MUSSER, HEANEY, RABOR: CRATEROMYS 3 tions. The relationship among these genera to be diagnostic in a larger series where the will be the subject of a future paper (Musser range of variation due to age, individual at- and Heaney, MS). tributes, and secondary sexual features can be more reliably estimated for the popula- ABBREVIATIONS AND METHODS tion. However, the morphologies ofthe spec- imens in each insular sample are so distinc- Specimens we studied and measured are in tive that most diagnostic features we note the Field Museum of Natural History, Chi- here will likely prove to be characteristic of cago (FMNH); the University of Michigan larger series. We are confident that the mor- Museum of Zoology, Ann Arbor (UMMZ); phological contrasts we see are not associated and the National Museum of Natural His- with insular populations that are physically tory, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, isolated and genetically compatible. Rather, D.C. (USNM). they distinguish physically and genetically All measurements are in millimeters. Cra- isolated populations, the definition of bio- nial measurements were taken with dial cal- logical species in mammals. We express our ipers graduated to 0.1 mm. See Musser and confidence in this hypothesis by naming the Gordon (1981) for definitions, and for an ex- Dinagat rat. planation about measurements of skins. Crateromys australis, new species ACKNOWLEDGMENTS HOLOTYPE: The holotype, UMMZ 161022, For this report we have relied upon spec- is an adult male obtained by Dr. D. S. Rabor imens in museums; we thank curators in and a field crew from Mindanao State Uni- charge of those collections for allowing us to versity on May 16, 1975, from Balitbiton, study and sometimes borrow material. The Loreto Municipality, Dinagat Island, Surigao photographs are by Messrs. Jim Coxe, Peter del Norte Province, Republic of the Philip- Goldberg, and Frank M. Greenwell. The map pines. The specimen consists ofa stuffed study was drawn by Patricia Wynne. We are es- skin (fig. 4), cranium and mandible (figs. 5- pecially grateful to those reviewers, both from 7), and baculum. The holotype is the only the American Museum and at other institu- example of the new species. tions, who took the time to read our manu- MEASUREMENTS: See table 1. script and provide critical evaluations of its TYPE LOCALITY: Dinagat is a small (about contents. 671 square km in area) and elongated island The present report is No. 115 in Results just offthe tip ofnortheastern Mindanao (fig. of the Archbold Expeditions. 2). Dinagat, wrote duPont and Rabor (1973, p. 2), "is located at 100 north latitude and THE NEW CRA4TEROMYS 125°45' east longitude. It lies southeast ofthe Naming and diagnosing the new species, southern end of Leyte Island and is north of as well as presenting its description and com- Surigao del Norte Province on the north- parisons with other species of Crateromys, eastern projection of Mindanao Island. One are the purposes ofthis section. Our samples of the smaller islands in the eastern Philip- of each species are small. Crateromys paulus pines, Dinagat lies on the Pacific Ocean side; is represented only by the holotype. Our sam- together with Luzon, Polillo, Catanduanes, ple of the Dinagat Crateromys also consists Samar, Mindanao, and Siargao, it forms a ofone specimen. The Luzon C. schadenbergi small part of the Eastern Rim of the Archi- is known to us by less than two dozen ex- pelago that directly borders the Philippine amples. Some of what we write here may Deep." Rugged, mountainous topography have to be modified if more specimens of characterizes Dinagat. The highest peak, each species, especially C. paulus and the Mount Redondo, is in the northern tip ofthe Dinagat animal, are ever obtained and be- island and rises to about 3000 ft above sea come available for study. Some of the fea- level. For further descriptions oftopography, tures that now set the new species apart from as well as vegetation, read duPont and Rabor C. paulus and C. schadenbergi may not prove (1973) and look at the terrain diagrams in 4 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES NO. 2821 0. C9 SCHADENBERGI I) ,Z- PALAWAN, BOR 3. BORNEO rr TAWITAWI FIG. 2. The Philippine islands and the insular distribution of the known species of Crateromys. King and McKee (1949). Crateromys aus- southern and points to the presence of a tralis is known only from Dinagat Island. species of Crateromys in the southern Phil- ETYMOLOGY: The Latin, australis, means ippine Islands, as contrasted with the north- 1985 MUSSER, HEANEY, RABOR: CRATEROMYS 5 em Philippines where two other species of cuspjust behind (cusp t4) straight on first Crateromys with different morphologies are and second molars, the posterolingual found. cusp (t7) of each molar moderately di- DIAGNOSIS: The following combination of rected anteriorly; characters distinguish Crateromys australis 24. anterolabial cusp (t3) present on each from either C. schadenbergi, C. paulus, or second and third upper molar; both (see also table 1 and figs. 1 and 3-9): 25. front lamina ofeach first lower molar not 1. body size moderate; connected to lamina behind it. 2. tail slightly longer than combined length DESCRIPTION AND COMPARISONS: The large of head and body; Crateromys schadenbergi and the smaller C. 3. ears dark and moderate in size; paulus are beautiful rats; Crateromys aus- 4. head without crest of fur; tralis is equally handsome. It has a chunky 5. dorsal pelage moderately long and slight- body, long tricolored tail, and tawny and or- ly rough, ventral fur thin and short; ange fur. Its overall body size is less than that 6. upperparts tawny spotted with black, un- of C. schadenbergi but greater than C. paulus derparts pale orange-brown, no apparent (table 1). The upperparts are tawny peppered dorsal color pattern; with black, and the fur is rough, not coarse 7. tail furry and tricolored, base colored like and stiff as it is on C. paulus or very long, rump, proximal half ofremainder oftail soft, and bushy, which are the qualities of C. black, distal half white; schadenbergi (fig. 1). The coloration is uni- 8. tail hairs short and stiff; form over upperparts of the body; there are 9. cranium, mandible, and molars of me- no patterns as in C. paulus or some speci- dium size; mens of C. schadenbergi (Musser and Gor- 10. temporal crests nearly straight, converg- don, 198 1; Meyer, 1896, pl. 14). Hairs form- ing slightly posteriorly; ing the overfur are orange-brown either 11. nasals broadest anteriorly and decreas- throughout their lengths or only near the tips ing quickly in width posteriorly; and are 20-25 mm long on most regions of 12. premaxillary suture on side of rostrum the body but only 10-15 mm long on the located at anterior margin of nasolacri- head. The top of the head is without a crest mal capsule; of fur; a crest is typical of C. schadenbergi 13. nasolacrimal capsule small relative to size (fig. 1). The uniform color ofthe head is bro- of cranium; ken up around the eyes, each of which is set 14. squamosal roots of zygomatic arch sit- within a narrow ring ofdarkly pigmented skin uated high on sides of braincase; that is circled by a ring ofskin with short and 15.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Evolutionary Biology of the Genus Rattus: Profile of an Archetypal Rodent Pest
    Bromadiolone resistance does not respond to absence of anticoagulants in experimental populations of Norway rats. Heiberg, A.C.; Leirs, H.; Siegismund, Hans Redlef Published in: <em>Rats, Mice and People: Rodent Biology and Management</em> Publication date: 2003 Document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Citation for published version (APA): Heiberg, A. C., Leirs, H., & Siegismund, H. R. (2003). Bromadiolone resistance does not respond to absence of anticoagulants in experimental populations of Norway rats. In G. R. Singleton, L. A. Hinds, C. J. Krebs, & D. M. Spratt (Eds.), Rats, Mice and People: Rodent Biology and Management (Vol. 96, pp. 461-464). Download date: 27. Sep. 2021 SYMPOSIUM 7: MANAGEMENT—URBAN RODENTS AND RODENTICIDE RESISTANCE This file forms part of ACIAR Monograph 96, Rats, mice and people: rodent biology and management. The other parts of Monograph 96 can be downloaded from <www.aciar.gov.au>. © Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research 2003 Grant R. Singleton, Lyn A. Hinds, Charles J. Krebs and Dave M. Spratt, 2003. Rats, mice and people: rodent biology and management. ACIAR Monograph No. 96, 564p. ISBN 1 86320 357 5 [electronic version] ISSN 1447-090X [electronic version] Technical editing and production by Clarus Design, Canberra 431 Ecological perspectives on the management of commensal rodents David P. Cowan, Roger J. Quy* and Mark S. Lambert Central Science Laboratory, Sand Hutton, York YO41 1LZ, UNITED KINGDOM *Corresponding author, email: [email protected] Abstract. The need to control Norway rats in the United Kingdom has led to heavy reliance on rodenticides, particu- larly because alternative methods do not reduce rat numbers as quickly or as efficiently.
    [Show full text]
  • Cruising Guide to the Philippines
    Cruising Guide to the Philippines For Yachtsmen By Conant M. Webb Draft of 06/16/09 Webb - Cruising Guide to the Phillippines Page 2 INTRODUCTION The Philippines is the second largest archipelago in the world after Indonesia, with around 7,000 islands. Relatively few yachts cruise here, but there seem to be more every year. In most areas it is still rare to run across another yacht. There are pristine coral reefs, turquoise bays and snug anchorages, as well as more metropolitan delights. The Filipino people are very friendly and sometimes embarrassingly hospitable. Their culture is a unique mixture of indigenous, Spanish, Asian and American. Philippine charts are inexpensive and reasonably good. English is widely (although not universally) spoken. The cost of living is very reasonable. This book is intended to meet the particular needs of the cruising yachtsman with a boat in the 10-20 meter range. It supplements (but is not intended to replace) conventional navigational materials, a discussion of which can be found below on page 16. I have tried to make this book accurate, but responsibility for the safety of your vessel and its crew must remain yours alone. CONVENTIONS IN THIS BOOK Coordinates are given for various features to help you find them on a chart, not for uncritical use with GPS. In most cases the position is approximate, and is only given to the nearest whole minute. Where coordinates are expressed more exactly, in decimal minutes or minutes and seconds, the relevant chart is mentioned or WGS 84 is the datum used. See the References section (page 157) for specific details of the chart edition used.
    [Show full text]
  • Biogeography of Mammals in SE Asia: Estimates of Rates of Colonization, Extinction and Speciation
    Biological Journal oflhe Linnean Sociely (1986), 28, 127-165. With 8 figures Biogeography of mammals in SE Asia: estimates of rates of colonization, extinction and speciation LAWRENCE R. HEANEY Museum of <oology and Division of Biological Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, U.S.A. Accepted for publication I4 February 1986 Four categories of islands in SE Asia may be identified on the basis of their histories of landbridge connections. Those islands on the shallow, continental Sunda Shelf were joined to the Asian mainland by a broad landbridge during the late Pleistocene; other islands were connected to the Sunda Shelf by a middle Pleistocene landbridge; some were parts of larger oceanic islands; and others remained as isolated oceanic islands. The limits of late Pleistocene islands, defined by the 120 ni bathymetric line, are highly concordant with the limits of faunal regions. Faunal variation among non-volant mammals is high between faunal regions and low within the faunal regions; endcmism of faunal regions characteristically exceeds 70%. Small and geologically young oceanic islands are depauperate; larger and older islands are more species-rich. The number of endemic species is correlated with island area; however, continental shelf islands less than 125000 km2 do not have endemic species, whereas isolated oceanic islands as small as 47 km2 often have endemic species. Geologirally old oceanic islands have many endemic species, whereas young oceanic islands have few endemic species. Colonization across sea channels that were 5-25 km wide during the Pleistocene has been low, with a rate of about 1-2/500000 years.
    [Show full text]
  • Checklist of the Mammals of Indonesia
    CHECKLIST OF THE MAMMALS OF INDONESIA Scientific, English, Indonesia Name and Distribution Area Table in Indonesia Including CITES, IUCN and Indonesian Category for Conservation i ii CHECKLIST OF THE MAMMALS OF INDONESIA Scientific, English, Indonesia Name and Distribution Area Table in Indonesia Including CITES, IUCN and Indonesian Category for Conservation By Ibnu Maryanto Maharadatunkamsi Anang Setiawan Achmadi Sigit Wiantoro Eko Sulistyadi Masaaki Yoneda Agustinus Suyanto Jito Sugardjito RESEARCH CENTER FOR BIOLOGY INDONESIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCES (LIPI) iii © 2019 RESEARCH CENTER FOR BIOLOGY, INDONESIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCES (LIPI) Cataloging in Publication Data. CHECKLIST OF THE MAMMALS OF INDONESIA: Scientific, English, Indonesia Name and Distribution Area Table in Indonesia Including CITES, IUCN and Indonesian Category for Conservation/ Ibnu Maryanto, Maharadatunkamsi, Anang Setiawan Achmadi, Sigit Wiantoro, Eko Sulistyadi, Masaaki Yoneda, Agustinus Suyanto, & Jito Sugardjito. ix+ 66 pp; 21 x 29,7 cm ISBN: 978-979-579-108-9 1. Checklist of mammals 2. Indonesia Cover Desain : Eko Harsono Photo : I. Maryanto Third Edition : December 2019 Published by: RESEARCH CENTER FOR BIOLOGY, INDONESIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCES (LIPI). Jl Raya Jakarta-Bogor, Km 46, Cibinong, Bogor, Jawa Barat 16911 Telp: 021-87907604/87907636; Fax: 021-87907612 Email: [email protected] . iv PREFACE TO THIRD EDITION This book is a third edition of checklist of the Mammals of Indonesia. The new edition provides remarkable information in several ways compare to the first and second editions, the remarks column contain the abbreviation of the specific island distributions, synonym and specific location. Thus, in this edition we are also corrected the distribution of some species including some new additional species in accordance with the discovery of new species in Indonesia.
    [Show full text]
  • Norntates PUBLISHED by the AMERICAN MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY CENTRAL PARK WEST at 79TH STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y
    AMERICAN MUSEUM Norntates PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY CENTRAL PARK WEST AT 79TH STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y. 10024 Number 3052, 19 pp., 9 figures, 1 table December 14, 1992 Sucking Lice (Insecta, Anoplura) from Indigenous Sulawesi Rodents: a New Species of Polyplax from a Montane Shrew Rat, and New Information About Polyplax wallacei and P. eropepli LANCE A. DURDEN' AND GUY G. MUSSER2 ABSTRACT Polyplax melasmothrixi, a new species of po- from Eropeplus canus from tropical upper mon- lyplacid sucking louse, is described from Melas- tane rain forest also in Central Sulawesi. Host and mothrix naso, a small-bodied shrew rat known habitat associations for these three species ofsuck- only from tropical upper montane rain forest in ing lice are discussed. Polyplax melasmothrixi and Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The male ofPolyplax P. eropepli are both known only from montane wallacei is described from specimens collected from habitats in Central Sulawesi and both appear to Bunomys chrysocomus trapped in tropical lowland be host specific (to M. naso and E. canus, respec- evergreen rain forest in Central Sulawesi. A further tively). Contrastingly, P. wallacei parasitizes two specimen ofPolyplax eropepli, a taxon previously species ofBunomys in lowland forests and is known known only from the type series, is documented from North and Central Sulawesi. INTRODUCTION Melasmothrix naso, Bunomys chrysoco- Musser and Holden, 1991). The shrew rat, mus, and Eropeplus canus are three murine M. naso, and the large-bodied E. canus have rodents found only in forests on the Indo- been recorded only from montane rainforest nesian island of Sulawesi (Musser, 1987; formations in the mountainous central part I Assistant Professor and Assistant Curator, Institute of Arthropodology and Parasitology, Georgia Southern Uni- versity, Landrum Box 8056, Statesboro, Georgia 30460.
    [Show full text]
  • The Philippines Hotspot
    Ecosystem Profile THE PHILIPPINES HOTSPOT final version December 11, 2001 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 3 The Ecosystem Profile 3 The Corridor Approach to Conservation 3 BACKGROUND 4 BIOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE OF THE PHILIPPINES HOTSPOT 5 Prioritization of Corridors Within the Hotspot 6 SYNOPSIS OF THREATS 11 Extractive Industries 11 Increased Population Density and Urban Sprawl 11 Conflicting Policies 12 Threats in Sierra Madre Corridor 12 Threats in Palawan Corridor 15 Threats in Eastern Mindanao Corridor 16 SYNOPSIS OF CURRENT INVESTMENTS 18 Multilateral Donors 18 Bilateral Donors 21 Major Nongovernmental Organizations 24 Government and Other Local Research Institutions 26 CEPF NICHE FOR INVESTMENT IN THE REGION 27 CEPF INVESTMENT STRATEGY AND PROGRAM FOCUS 28 Improve linkage between conservation investments to multiply and scale up benefits on a corridor scale in Sierra Madre, Eastern Mindanao and Palawan 29 Build civil society’s awareness of the myriad benefits of conserving corridors of biodiversity 30 Build capacity of civil society to advocate for better corridor and protected area management and against development harmful to conservation 30 Establish an emergency response mechanism to help save Critically Endangered species 31 SUSTAINABILITY 31 CONCLUSION 31 LIST OF ACRONYMS 32 2 INTRODUCTION The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) is designed to better safeguard the world's threatened biodiversity hotspots in developing countries. It is a joint initiative of Conservation International (CI), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. CEPF provides financing to projects in biodiversity hotspots, areas with more than 60 percent of the Earth’s terrestrial species diversity in just 1.4 percent of its land surface.
    [Show full text]
  • Quaternary Murid Rodents of Timor Part I: New Material of Coryphomys Buehleri Schaub, 1937, and Description of a Second Species of the Genus
    QUATERNARY MURID RODENTS OF TIMOR PART I: NEW MATERIAL OF CORYPHOMYS BUEHLERI SCHAUB, 1937, AND DESCRIPTION OF A SECOND SPECIES OF THE GENUS K. P. APLIN Australian National Wildlife Collection, CSIRO Division of Sustainable Ecosystems, Canberra and Division of Vertebrate Zoology (Mammalogy) American Museum of Natural History ([email protected]) K. M. HELGEN Department of Vertebrate Zoology National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution, Washington and Division of Vertebrate Zoology (Mammalogy) American Museum of Natural History ([email protected]) BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY Number 341, 80 pp., 21 figures, 4 tables Issued July 21, 2010 Copyright E American Museum of Natural History 2010 ISSN 0003-0090 CONTENTS Abstract.......................................................... 3 Introduction . ...................................................... 3 The environmental context ........................................... 5 Materialsandmethods.............................................. 7 Systematics....................................................... 11 Coryphomys Schaub, 1937 ........................................... 11 Coryphomys buehleri Schaub, 1937 . ................................... 12 Extended description of Coryphomys buehleri............................ 12 Coryphomys musseri, sp.nov.......................................... 25 Description.................................................... 26 Coryphomys, sp.indet.............................................. 34 Discussion . ....................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Ecological Assessments in the B+WISER Sites
    Ecological Assessments in the B+WISER Sites (Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park, Upper Marikina-Kaliwa Forest Reserve, Bago River Watershed and Forest Reserve, Naujan Lake National Park and Subwatersheds, Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park and Mt. Apo Natural Park) Philippines Biodiversity & Watersheds Improved for Stronger Economy & Ecosystem Resilience (B+WISER) 23 March 2015 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by Chemonics International Inc. The Biodiversity and Watersheds Improved for Stronger Economy and Ecosystem Resilience Program is funded by the USAID, Contract No. AID-492-C-13-00002 and implemented by Chemonics International in association with: Fauna and Flora International (FFI) Haribon Foundation World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) The author’s views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. Ecological Assessments in the B+WISER Sites Philippines Biodiversity and Watersheds Improved for Stronger Economy and Ecosystem Resilience (B+WISER) Program Implemented with: Department of Environment and Natural Resources Other National Government Agencies Local Government Units and Agencies Supported by: United States Agency for International Development Contract No.: AID-492-C-13-00002 Managed by: Chemonics International Inc. in partnership with Fauna and Flora International (FFI) Haribon Foundation World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) 23 March
    [Show full text]
  • Novltates PUBLISHED by the AMERICAN MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY CENTRAL PARK WEST at 79TH STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y
    AMERICAN MUSEUM Novltates PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY CENTRAL PARK WEST AT 79TH STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y. 10024 Number 3064, 34 pp., 8 figures, 2 tables June 10, 1993 Philippine Rodents: Chromosomal Characteristics and Their Significance for Phylogenetic Inference Among 13 Species (Rodentia: Muridae: Murinae) ERIC A. RICKART1 AND GUY G. MUSSER2 ABSTRACT Karyotypes are reported for 13 murines be- bers of 50 and 88, respectively, indicating longing to the endemic Philippine genera Apomys, substantial chromosomal variability within that Archboldomys, Batomys, Bullimus, Chrotomys, genus. Archboldomys (2N = 26, FN = 43) has an Phloeomys, and Rhynchomys, and the widespread aberrant sex chromosome system and a karyotype genus Rattus. The karyotype of Phloeomys cum- that is substantially different from other taxa stud- ingi (2N = 44, FN = 66) differs from that of P. ied. The karyotype ofBullimus bagobus (2N = 42, pallidus (2N = 40, FN = 60), and both are chro- FN = ca. 58) is numerically similar to that of the mosomally distinct from other taxa examined. Two native Rattus everetti and the two non-native spe- species of Batomys (2N = 52), Chrotomys gon- cies ofRattus, R. tanezumi and R. exulans. Chro- zalesi (2N = 44), Rhynchomys isarogensis (2N = mosomal data corroborate some phylogenetic re- 44), and Apomys musculus (2N = 42) have FN = lationships inferred from morphology, and support 52-53 and a predominance of telocentric chro- the hypothesis that the Philippine murid fauna is mosomes. Two other species ofApomys have dip- composed of separate clades representing inde- loid numbers of30 and 44, and fundamental num- pendent ancestral invasions of the archipelago. INTRODUCTION The Philippine Islands support a remark- Heaney and Rickart, 1990; Musser and Hea- ably diverse murine rodent fauna, including ney, 1992).
    [Show full text]
  • Adaptation and Foraging from the Terminal Pleistocene to the Early Holocene: Excavation at Bubog on Ilin Island, Philippines
    Adaptation and foraging from the Terminal Pleistocene to the Early Holocene: Excavation at Bubog on Ilin Island, Philippines Alfred F. Pawlik1, Philip J. Piper2, Marie Grace Pamela G. Faylona3, Sabino G. Padilla, Jr.{4, Jane Carlos1, Armand S. B. Mijares1, Benjamin Vallejo, Jr.1, Marian Reyes1, Noel Amano1, Thomas Ingicco1, Martin Porr5 1University of the Philippines Diliman, 2Australian National University, 3National Museum of the Philippines, 4University of the Philippines Manila, 5University of Western Australia The recently discovered human remains from Callao Cave, northern Luzon, Philippines securely date the migration of hominins into the Philippines to ca. 70 kya (thousands of years ago). The direct route to reach Luzon from the Asian mainland is via Borneo, Palawan, through Mindoro and into Luzon. Our research focuses on Mindoro Island as a potential stepping stone to the main Philippine Archipelago. While Palawan and Luzon have produced evidence for early human occupation, no systematic research on the prehistory of Mindoro has been conducted until now. We report on recent archaeological investigations at the Bubog rockshelter sites on the small island of Ilin just off the coast of Mindoro. The excavations produced evidence of stratified sequences of human habitation at the two rockshelter sites in the form of dense shell middens that date to ca. 11 kya onwards. They provide direct evidence on how variability in landscape formation, sea levels, and landmass during the terminal Pleistocene and early Holocene influenced the behavior of early human populations. Numerous species of molluscs were recorded and provisional results indicate variations in the invertebrate faunas throughout the stratigraphic sequences, resulting from sea level rise and the establishment of coral reefs between Ilin and Mindoro at the end of the Pleistocene.
    [Show full text]
  • Distribution of Native and Non-Native Rats (Rattus Spp.) Along an Elevational Gradient in a Tropical Rainforest of Southern Luzon, Philippines
    ECOTROPICA 14: 129–136, 2008 © Society for Tropical Ecology DISTRIBUTION OF NATIVE AND NON-NATIVE RATS (RATTUS SPP.) ALONG AN ELEVATIONAL GRADIENT IN A TROPICAL RAINFOREST OF SOUTHERN LUZON, PHILIPPINES Cristina C. Salibay & Hazel Anne V. Luyon De La Salle University-Dasmariñas, Dasmariñas, Cavite, Philippines Abstract. Rats (Muridae) of the genus Rattus occur in the Philippines, both as native and as invasive species. While the invasive species are well known to use a large range of anthropogenic habitats, little is known about their potential to occur in forest areas. We studied the occurrence and relative abundance of different species of Rattus in forests along elevational gradients on three mountains within the Palay-palay / Mataas na Gulod National Park in Southern Luzon, Philippines. Four Rattus species were collected and their occurrence and relative abundance were found to differ significantly between species and along elevational gradients. Rattus norvegicus (40.3% of captures), R. tanezumi (21.5%), and R. argentiventer (5.6%) are invasive species and R. everetti (32.7%) a native forest-inhabiting species. While the three invasive species were most abundant at low elevations, R. everetti was most abundant at higher elevations. The number of invasive rats has been attributed to their survival and adaptation at lower elevations, where habitat conversion and degradation are most intense, while native species are more common at higher elevations where habitat is relatively un- disturbed. Key words: elevation, forest species, invasive species, Philippines, rainforest, Rattus species. INTRODUCTION and occur at high abundances in local mammal as- semblages (Heaney et al. 1998, Steppan et al. 2003).
    [Show full text]
  • Cloud Rats in the Philippines — Preliminary Report on Distribution
    ORYX VOL 27 NO 1 JANUARY 1993 Cloud rats in the Philippines - preliminary report on distribution and status W. L. R. Oliver, C. R. Cox, P. C. Gonzales and L. R. Heaney This paper describes a preliminary field survey of bushy-tailed cloud rats Crateromys spp. and slender-tailed cloud rats Phloeomys in the Philippines in April and May 1990. Brief visits were made to all islands/locations known to support these animals and also to neighbouring areas considered likely to do so. Comparing the results with information from previous surveys suggests that both genera, particularly Crateromys, are more widely distributed than formerly believed, but that some forms are threatened. Three of the four known species of Crateromys are known only from their holotype specimens, one of which awaits description. Another is extinct in its type locality on Ilin Island but may survive on neighbouring Mindoro. These preliminary findings indicate that thorough surveys are required to establish the status of certain species, to investigate the possibility that new species remain undiscovered and to develop conservation plans to reduce the likelihood of further extinctions occurring. The discovery of the Panay species means Introduction that the genus Crateromys is now known from widely separated locations in each of the four There are at least 22 genera and 52 species of principal faunal regions or late Pleistocene murid rodents in the Philippines, of which 16 islands (Luzon, Mindoron, Mindanoan and genera and 44 species are endemic (Heaney et Negros) as defined by Heaney (1986) on the al., 1987). Among the endemic genera are basis of the 120 m bathymetric line (Figure 1).
    [Show full text]