374.

Crump’s Rat

Diomys crumpi

French: Rat de Crump / German: Crump-Maus / Spanish: Rata de Crump

Other common names: Crump’s Diomys, Crump’s Mouse

Taxonomy. Diomys crumpi Thomas, 1917,

Paresnath Hills, Hazaribagh District, Bihar, India.

Based on morpho-anatomical skull characters, in 1983 G. G. Musser and C. Newcomb concluded that D. crumpi was closer to Indian Millardia and Cremnomys than to Indochinese and Sundaic species; at present, no genetic data appear to corroborate this hypothesis. Monotypic.

Distribution. Knwon only from single records from S Nepal, NE India (Bihar and Manipurstates), and N Myanmar.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 102-135 mm,tail 109-130 mm, ear 19-27 mm, hindfoot 24-28 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Crump’s Ratis a soft-furred, small-sized rat with the tail slightly smaller (91-105%) than head—body length in some specimens but also equal or longerin others. Tail is bicolored. The dark brownish-gray dorsal pelage contrasts with the grayish-white ventral coloration. There are five to six plantar pads.

Habitat. Tropical evergreen, temperate broadleaved and moist deciduous forests at altitudes of 1000-2000 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Crump’s Rats are terrestrial and nocturnal; they burrow in the ground.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The [UCN Red List.

Bibliography. Agrawal (2000), Corbet & Hill (1992), Francis (2008), Musser & Newcomb (1983).