A review of the rodent fauna of Seram, Moluccas, with the description of a new subspecies of mosaic-tailed rat, Melomys rufescens paveli

Abstract

With five previously described native species, all of them endemic, and at least four introduced species, the murid rodent fauna of Seram is more diverse than that catalogued from any other Moluccan island. Here, the rodent fauna of Seram is briefly reviewed, and a newly recorded rodent from the island is described as Melomys rufescens paveli, a new subspecies of a species otherwise known from New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago. Other non-volant mammals from Seram and the nearby islands of Ambon and Buru are briefly discussed.