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Citation for Study 10997

About Citation title: "Discovering Diversity: Seven New Species of Large-bodied Apomys (Mammalia: Muridae) from Luzon Island, Philippines".
About Study name: "Discovering Diversity: Seven New Species of Large-bodied Apomys (Mammalia: Muridae) from Luzon Island, Philippines".
About This study is part of submission 10987 (Status: Published).

Citation

Heaney L., Balete D.S., Rickart E.A., Alviola P.A., Duya M.R., Duya M.V., Veluz M.J., Vandevrede L., & Steppan S.J. 2010. Discovering Diversity: Seven New Species of Large-bodied Apomys (Mammalia: Muridae) from Luzon Island, Philippines. Fieldiana, .

Authors

  • Heaney L.
  • Balete D.S.
  • Rickart E.A.
  • Alviola P.A.
  • Duya M.R.
  • Duya M.V.
  • Veluz M.J.
  • Vandevrede L.
  • Steppan S.J. (submitter) Phone 850 644-6536

Abstract

Surveys of small mammals in carefully selected mountains and mountain ranges on Luzon Island, Philippines since 2000 have led to our discovery of seven previously unknown species of forest mice, Apomys, a remarkable radiation on just a portion of one island. Based on morphological and cytochrome b DNA sequence data presented here, we propose a new subgenus, Megapomys, to include the large-bodied members of the genus, which form a monophyletic unit of relatively large mice (averaging ca. 65 to 110 g) with tails about as long as or slightly shorter than the length of the head and body, all of which forage on the ground. Other members of the genus are assigned to the subgenus Apomys; they are smaller (ca. 18 to 41 g), have long tails, and usually or often forage above ground. Members of the subgenus Megapomys include four previously recognized species and the seven described here. All occur in northern and central Luzon Island, with the exception of one species that occurs on Mindoro Island; none are present in southern Luzon. Each species may be distinguished both morphologically and genetically. There are few records of Megapomys below 500 m elevation, and some species occur near the peak of the highest mountain on Luzon (i.e., up to ca. 2800 m). On four mountain ranges, two species of the subgenus co-occur, one at lower and one at higher elevations, though there is usually some syntopic overlap. Sister-species usually occur allopatrically in different mountain ranges, but there is one exception. Some of these species occur in areas not previously known to support endemic mammals, indicating that these areas are previously unrecognized areas of mammalian endemism where further study is warranted.

Keywords

cytochrome b, montane biogeography, Murinae

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  • Canonical resource URI: http://purl.org/phylo/treebase/phylows/study/TB2:S10997
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