Bunomys penitus Miller and Hollister 1921

Bunomys penitus Miller and Hollister 1921, Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 34: 72.

Type Locality: Indonesia, C Sulawesi, Gunung Lehio, above 6000 ft (1830 m).

Vernacular Names: Montane Bunomys.

Synonyms: Bunomys sericatus (Miller and Hollister 1921) .

Distribution: Sulawesi; endemic to montane forest formations in central core and SE peninsula.

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Bunomys fratrorum Group. Originally described as a species of Rattus, then listed as a species in the chrysocomus Group of Rattus (Tate, 1936; Ellerman, 1941), treated as a subspecies of Rattus adspersus (Laurie and Hill, 1954), and included in Frateromys by Sody (1941). Bunomys penitus is distinctive in morphology and confined to lower and upper montane evergreen rainforest (Musser, 1987 a, 1991; Musser and Dagosto, 1987; Musser and Holden, 1991; Musser and Newcomb, 1983; Musser, ms). Karyotypic data summarized by Rickart and Musser (1993).

In the C part of Sulawesi, B. penitus inhabits montane forest formations, is replaced by an undescribed species in tropical evergreen rainforest at middle elevations, and by B. andrewsi below that species in lowland forests. No records indicate that any species in the B. fratrorum species-group are sympatric, but B. chrysocomus of the B. chrysocomus Group is sympatric and syntopic with all three of the B. fratrorum group species (Musser, ms).