Flores Giant Rat

The Flores Giant Rat (Papagomys armandvillei) occurs on the island of Flores in Indonesia. Head and body length is 41–45 cm and tail length is 33–70 cm, making the Flores giant rat at least twice the size of an average Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) with a 25 cm long body and 15 cm long tail. It is the only species in the genus Papagomys.

Musser (1981) describes the rats as having small, round ears, a chunky body and a small tail, and that the giant rat of Flores appears to be adapted for life on the ground and refuge in burrows. The rat has dense dark hair (pelage). Analysis of the teeth of the Flores Giant Rat suggests that the rat has a diet of leaves, buds, fruit, and certain kinds of insect as inferred by large hypsodont teeth.

P. armandvilleis is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. A related species, P. theodorverhoeveni, is known from subfossil remains from 3,000 - 4,000 years ago. This species is presumed to be extinct, but may still exist on the island.

Sources and further reading

• Musser, G.G. The Giant Rat of Flores and its Relatives East of Borneo and Bali. 1981. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 169:67-176.