Mouse Species Discovered in the Philippines
June 2004
A tiny mouse, with bright orange fur and whiskers eight times as long as its head is wide, has been scurrying through the lowland forests of Mount Banashaw in the Philippines unknown to science. Until now. A team of American and Filipino biologists discovered the mouse, which they believe is a new species or even a new genus, in a tangle of large vines in an area of regenerating forest about 50 miles from Manila on the island of Luzon. |
 Photo by Larry Heaney, The Field Museum |
Nearly all of the small mammals on Luzon Island are descended from just two species that arrived in the Philippines about 10 to 15 million years ago, but not this new one. And while most of the known mouse species are ground dwellers that root around for food, the new mouse appears to prefer the lofty heights of the vines.
The discovery of a new species is especially exciting because the Philippines are often listed as one of the highest global priorities for conservation. Lawrence Heaney, Curator of Mammals at the Field Museum in Chicago and co-leader of the team describes the biological diversity of the Philippines as ten times that of the Galapagos Islands with one of the highest concentrations of unique mammals in the world.
Only 3 percent of the original mature lowland rain forest in the Philippines remains today, and it is feared that many species have already been lost before they were discovered. But Heaney says that finding the new mouse in regenerating lowland forests gives greater hope for the success of biological diversity conservation efforts.
Source: The Field Museum, Chicago
