214.

Mount Banahaw Shrew Rat

Rhynchomys banahao

French: Rhynchomys du Banahaw / German: Mount-Banahaw-Nasenratte / Spanish: Rata musarana de Banahaw

Other common names: Mount Banahaw Rhynchomys

Taxonomy. Rhynchomys banahao Balete et al., 2007,

Mount Banahaw, Quezon Province, Luzon Island, Philippines.

Rhynchomys banahao was recently described on basis of morpho-anatomical, morphometric, and molecular data. It is sister taxon of R. isarogensis. Monotypic.

Distribution. Known only from Mt Banahaw, Luzon I, Philippines.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 178-190 mm, tail 126-130 mm, ear 24-25 mm, hindfoot 39—40 mm; weight 135-155 g. Like other representatives of the genus, the ratsized Mount Banahaw Shrew Rat is characterized by a slenderhead, pointed snout, small mouth with tiny incisors, relatively small eyes, and long vibrissae. Dorsal pelage is soft and dense. It is dorsally dark gray and ventrally paler gray; tail is shorter than combined head and body and has same dark gray color. Hindfoot is long and narrow. As with all Rhynchomys species, the skull exhibits an elongated narrow mandible and there are only two upper and lower molars. Females bear two pairs of mammae.

Habitat. Primary montane forests, dominated by species of Podocarpus (Podocarpaceae), Lithocarpus (Fagaceae), and Syzygium (Myrtaceae), at elevations between 1250 m and 1625 m.

Food and Feeding. Mount Banahaw Shrew Rats were caught with traps baited with earthworms and few fragments of wings and exoskeletons of unidentified insects, suggesting they are probably insectivorous.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The Mount Banahaw Shrew Rat appears to be nocturnal and crepuscular, and has been captured on the ground.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List, although the Mount Banahaw Shrew Rat is not commonly trapped.

Bibliography. Balete, Rickart, Heaney et al. (2012), Balete, Rickart, Rosell-Ambal et al. (2007), Heaney, Balete & Rickart (2016).