Maxomys tajuddinii Achmadi, Maryanto & Maharadantunkamsi 2012

755.

Tajuddin’s Spiny Rat

Maxomys tajuddinii

French: Maxomys de Tajuddin / German: Tajuddin-Rajah-Ratte / Spanish: Rata espinosa de Tajudin

Other common names: Tajuddin’s Sundaic Spiny Rat

Taxonomy. Maxomys tajuddinii Achmadi, Maryanto & Maharadantunkamsi, 2012,

“One kilometer west of Empakuq village, ca. 10 km toward Melak town, Kutai dis-trict (1° 19° 8:11”

8, 120° 6’ 8” E), Fast Kalimantan, Indonesia.”

Populations of M. tajuddinii were previously allocated to M. whiteheadi (which it is completely sympatric with), although genetic and morphological evidence show that it is distinct. It nested within M. hylomyoudes, although that was based on a single specimen, and more substantial genetic studies are needed. Monotypic.

Distribution. Sumatra, SC Peninsular Malaysia, and N & C Borneo (including Balambangan I).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 95-121 mm, tail 106-122 mm, hindfoot 27-30 mm; weight 50-70 g. Tajuddin’s Spiny Rat is small and similar to the smallerWhitehead’s Sundaic Spiny Rat (M. whiteheadr). Pelage is short and spiny. Dorsum is brownish orange buff, with intermixed black guard hairs, gray underfur, and darker brown rump. Venter is creamy white, with gray underfur tipped with white or silver and gray normal hairs with creamy white tips. Dorsal and ventral pelage are sharply demarcated, which is unusual for Maxomys. Feet are narrow and white. Each eye has dark brown ring. Ears are relatively small and dark brown, covered with short brown hairs; vibrissae are long and dark brown or brownish black. Tail is 90-100% of head-body length and bicolored, dark blackish brown above and white below. Skull is elongated and gracile, with wide rostrum and wide and rounded braincase. There are four pairs of mammae: one pectoral, one post-axillary, and two inguinal.

Habitat. Swamp forests, mixed dipterocarp lowland, and mixed dipterocarp and kerangas forests at elevations of 100-1000 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Tajuddin’s Spiny Rat is mostly nocturnal and terrestrial; it nests in burrows. Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information. Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Tajuddin’s Spiny Rat has a wide distribution and occurs in Kinabalu Park, Niah National Park, Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary, and Fraser’s Hill Forest Reserve, among others. Logging throughout Borneo and other islands of the Sunda Shelf is a major conservation threat. Bibliography. Achmadi, Esselstyn et al. (2013), Achmadi, Maryanto & Maharadatunkamsi (2012), Engelbrektsson & Kennerley (2016c¢), Phillipps & Phillipps (2016), Steppan & Schenk (2017).