Niviventer huang, (BONHOTE, 1905)

Ge, Deyan, Feijó, Anderson, Abramov, Alexei V., Wen, Zhixin, Liu, Zhengjia, Cheng, Jilong, Xia, Lin, Lu, Liang & Yang, Qisen, 2021, Molecular phylogeny and morphological diversity of the Niviventer fulvescens species complex with emphasis on species from China, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 191 : -

N IVIVENTER HUANG ( BONHOTE, 1905)

( FIGS 5C, 6)

Lowland niviventer, Lowland white-bellied rat.

Mus huang Bonhote, 1905: 19 . Kuatun (Guadun), north-western Fokien (Fujian Province), China.

Mus ling Bonhote, 1905: 19 . Ching Fen Ling (Qingfeng Ling), north-western Fokien (Fujian Province), China.

Rattus huang vulpicolor Allen, 1926: 14 . Namting River, Yunnan, China.

Rattus flavipilis Shih, 1930: 2 . Luoxiang, Guangxi, China.

Rattus flavipilis minor Shih, 1930: 7 . Kutchen, Loshiang, Kwangsi (Guangxi Province), China.

Rattus wongi Shih, 1931: 6 . Yaoshan, Kwantung (Guangdong Province), China.

Holotype: NHM 98.11.1.16, skin and skull of an adult male collected by J. D. La Touche on 24 April 1898. Kuatun (Guadun), north-western Fokien (Fujian Province), China.

Measurements: EMs and CMs of the holotype ( Bonhote, 1905) are as follows: HBL = 155, TL = 188, HF = 30 and EL = 16; greatest length of skull = 37, basilar length = 27 and PL = 17; diastema = 9.5; incisive foramina = 7; length of nasals = 14; interorbital breadth = 6; greatest breadth of braincase = 14; and length of molar series (alveoli) = 6.

BM, EMs and CMs (mean ± 1 SD, range) of molecular vouchers and museum specimens: BM = 73.67 ± 17.81 (40.00–120.40, N = 105). EMs of 105 adult specimens: HBL = 135.36 ± 12.30, TL = 172.08 ± 11.84, HFL = 28.11 ± 1.53 and EL = 19.64 ± 1.81. CMs from 50 intact adult specimens: TLC = 34.78 ± 2.01, NL = 12.85 ± 1.27, GWS = 5.32 ± 0.41, SDO = 5.65 ± 0.32, ZB = 14.89 ± 1.19, GMB = 13.13 ± 0.60, PL = 17.08 ± 1.00, IFL = 5.37 ± 0.57, WIF = 2.45 ± 0.20, GPB = 6.56 ± 0.27, LTB = 5.54 ± 0.52, ULMM = 5.48 ± 0.26, ULMD = 8.77 ± 0.76, ML = 16.27 ± 1.12, LLMM = 5.44 ± 0.32 and LLMD = 4.61 ± 0.58.

Diagnosis: Niviventer huang has a bright yellowish brown colour on the dorsum and is more fulvous on the sides. Spines are thick and whitish and abundant on the rump. Feet are generally whitish, with a golden patch on the dorsal surface of the metatarsus. Tail is clearly bicoloured, dark brown in dorsal view, white in ventral view, and covered with short whitish hairs not covering the scales.

Distribution: This species is distributed in central and eastern China, including Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang, Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou and Hainan Island.

Comments: Based on molecular data, three genetic lineages were present in N. huang : the first lineage includes individuals from Yunnan and Fujian Provinces, the second lineage includes samples from Hainan Province and the third lineage includes individuals from Sichuan, Chongqing, Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong and Guangxi Provinces ( Figs 1, 2). In line with this result, Bonhote (1905) stated that the type of N. huang (from Fujian Province) is indistinguishable from a specimen collected in Ngau-tchi-lea Mountain (now Five-Finger Mountain ) in Hainan Province .

Moreover, Bonhote (1905) described N. ling from the same province (Fujian). Notably, Bonhote mentioned that N. ling also occurs in Kuatun (type locality of N. huang ) and that both taxa closely resemble each other. Based on our direct examination of the holotypes of N. huang and N. ling , we found the differences between these species subtle, mainly related to slight differences in fur colour and body size (Supporting Information, Fig. S4; Table S3). Therefore, given the subtle differences between the types, that both taxa occur in the same locality (Kuatun, according to Bonhote) and all sequences of Fujian provinces cluster together, we treat N. ling as junior synonym of N. huang .

Sympatric species: Niviventer huang occurs in sympatry with N. mekongis in south China, and the confirmed overlapping records are from Lincang Snow Mountain, Lincang and Menghai, both in southern Yunnan Province.

NIVIVENTER MEKONGIS ( ROBINSON & KLOSS, 1922)