Mammelomys lanosus (Thomas 1922)

Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn, 2005, Order Rodentia - Family Muridae, Mammal Species of the World: a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3 rd Edition), Volume 2, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 1189-1531 : 1358

Mammelomys lanosus (Thomas 1922)

[Melomys] lanosus Thomas 1922 , Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 9, 9: 263.

Type Locality: New Guinea, Prov. of Papua (= Irian Jaya), Doormanpad-bivak (3°30'S, 138°30'E), 2400 m.

Vernacular Names: Highland Mammelomys.

Synonyms: Mammelomys shawmayeri Rümmler 1935 .

Distribution: Mountain forests (above 1000-1500 m) of N New Guinea; from the type locality in Prov. of Papua (= Irian Jaya) eastward along Central Cordillera through the Telefomin region, Schrader Range, Kratke Mtns, and Mt Hagen region to the Wau area of Papua New Guinea; also from Cyclops Range in the northern coastal mountains; not recorded from Huon Peninsula.

Conservation: IUCN – Lower Risk (lc).

Discussion: Once treated as a subspecies of Paramelomys levipes , lanosus is a separate species ( Flannery, 1990 b; Menzies, 1996). It is unrelated to P. levipes , but instead is phylogenetically allied with Mammelomys rattoides , a larger-bodied species that displaces it in lower altitudes. This close association was also reflected in Menzies' (1990) similarity coefficient analysis and his later systematic revision ( Menzies, 1996). Flannery (1990 b) listed shawmayeri as a synonym of M. rattoides , but holotype is an example of M. lanosus ( Menzies, 1996; Musser’s study of type series in BMNH).