Continued survival of the elusive Seram orange melomys (Melomys fulgens)

Abstract

AbstractMany poorly-known small mammals have remained undetected for decades, includingMelomys fulgens, a distinctive orange murid from Seram, Indonesia, that has been unrecorded since 1920. We report previously undocumented specimens ofM. fulgenscollected in 1993 and 1994, and local ecological knowledge from 2017 including descriptions and recent sightings, providing strong indirect evidence of its continued survival in similar habitat to known collection localities. These findings indicate relatively widespread distribution ofM. fulgensin low-elevation coastal forest across Seram, raising hope for continued survival of Seram’s other ‘lost’ small mammals.