Hyomys Thomas 1903

Hyomys Thomas 1903, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1903 (2): 198.

Type Species: Hyomys meeki Thomas 1904

Species and subspecies: 2 species:

Species Hyomys dammermani Stein 1933

Species Hyomys goliath (Milne-Edwards 1900)

Discussion: Pogonomys Division. Member of the New Guinea Old Endemics (Musser, 1981 c). Phallic morphology documented by Lidicker (1968). Distributional and biological data summarized by Flannery (1990 b, 1995 a). Analysis of immunological distances by Watts and Baverstock (1994 a) placed Hyomys in a clade with Chiruromys, Pogonomys, Anisomys, Coccymys, Mallomys, and Macruromys, but could not identify clear affinity with any particular genus within that group. Based upon their primitive sperm morphologies, Breed and Aplin (1994:26) speculated that Hyomys, along with Anisomys, "may represent some of the earliest offshoots of the Australo-Papuan radiation." Whether only one or more species are present in Hyomys has never been satisfactorily resolved (Flannery, 1990 b; Rümmler, 1938; Tate, 1951), but our examination of museum specimens revealed the two species listed below.