Rattus tunneyi

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	RODENTIA	MURIDAE

Scientific Name:	Rattus tunneyi
Species Authority:	(Thomas, 1904)
Common Name/s: English – Pale Field Rat

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:	Least Concern     ver 3.1
Year Published:	2008
Assessor/s:	Morris, K., Burbidge, A., Aplin, K. & Ellis, M.
Reviewer/s:	Lamoreux, J. (Global Mammal Assessment Team) & Amori, G. (Small Nonvolant Mammal Red List Authority)
Justification: Listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, occurrence within a number of protected areas, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category.
History:	1996 – Lower Risk/near threatened

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is patchily distributed in western, northern, and eastern Australia. It appears that prior to European settlement of Australia, this species was distributed over most of continental Australia, except for the humid south-east (Aplin et al. 2008). The species is present on quite a few islands, particularly in Western Australia.
Countries:	Native: Australia
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	It is a patchily distributed species that is abundant in some areas; fluctuates widely in response to climatic variability (Aplin et al. 2008).
Population Trend:	Unknown

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	It is a nocturnal species that lives in tall grassland, cane fields, and other modified habitats. The species forms shallow burrows in loose, sandy soil (Aplin et al. 2008). Females give birth to up to eleven young after a gestation period of 21 to 22 days (Aplin et al. 2008).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):

Rattus rattus eliminates this species. Cattle grazing could be a threat due to trampling of shallow burrows. Feral cats also may be a threat.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:

It is present in many protected areas (e.g., Kakadu National Park).

Bibliography [top]

Aplin, K. P. and Baverstock, P. R. 2008. Pale Field-rat, Rattus tunneyi. In: S. Van Dyck and R. Strahan (eds), The mammals of Australia. Third Edition, pp. 698-699. Reed New Holland, Sydney, Australia.