Komodomys Musser and Boeadi 1980

Komodomys Musser and Boeadi 1980, J. Mammal., 61: 397.

Type Species: Rattus rintjanus Sody 1941

Species and subspecies: 1 species:

Species Komodomys rintjanus (Sody 1941)

Discussion: Rattus Division. An endemic of Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Although cranial conformation is distinctive, dental morphology allies Komodomys to Papagomys, another endemic of Nusa Tenggara found only on Flores Isl (Musser, 1981 c; Musser and Boeadi, 1980). Membership in a Rattus Division is supported by cranial and dental morphology (Musser and Newcomb, 1983) along with albumin immunology (Watts and Baverstock, 1994 b); the albumin data ties Komodomys more closely to Sulawesian Bunomys than to Papagomys . Recent unpublished allozyme electrophoresis analysis demonstrates a close relationship between K. rintjanus and Rattus timorensis (see that account). Curiously, Pavlinov et al. (1995 a) listed Komodomys, along with Papagomys in a Pithecheir Section of a more inclusive Micromys Group.