Species Rattus colletti (Thomas, 1904)
Dusky Rat
- Mus colletti Thomas, O. 1904. New species of Pteropus, Mus, and Pogonomys from the Australian region. Novitates Zoologicae 11: 597-600 [599].
Type data:
Holotype BMNH 4.4.4.4 ♀ skin & skull, South Alligator River, NT (open clay flats).
Distribution
IBRA
NT: Arnhem Coast (ARC), Arnhem Plateau (ARP), Central Arnhem (CA), Daly Basin (DAB), Darwin Coastal (DAC), Gulf Fall and Uplands (GFU), Gulf Coastal (GUC), Pine Creek (PCK), Tiwi Cobourg (TIW), Victoria Bonaparte (VB)
Ecological Descriptors
Burrowing, diurnal, folivore, terrestrial, tussock grassland.
General References
Baverstock, P.R., Watts, C.H.S., Adams, M. & Cole, S.R. 1981. Genetical relationships among Australian rodents (Muridae). Australian Journal of Zoology 29: 289-303
Baverstock, P.R., Watts, C.H.S., Hogarth, J.T., Robinson, A.C. & Robinson, J.F. 1977. Chromosome evolution in Australian rodents II. The Rattus Group. Chromosoma (Berlin) 61: 227-241
Breed, W.J. & Sarafis, V. 1979. On the phylogenetic significance of spermatozoal morphology and male reproductive tract anatomy in Australian rodents. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 103: 127-135
Friend, G.R., Dudzinski, M.L. & Cellier, K.M. 1988. Rattus colletti (Rodentia: Muridae) in the Australian wet-dry tropics: seasonal habitat preferences, population dynamics and the effects of buffalo (Bubalus bubalis). Australian Journal of Ecology 13: 51-66
Madsen, T. & Shine, R. 1999. Rainfall and rats: Climatically-driven dynamics of a tropical rodent population. Australian Journal of Ecology 24: 80-89
Morrissey, B.L. & Breed, W.G. 1982. Variation in external morphology of the glans penis of Australian native rodents. Australian Journal of Zoology 30: 495-502
Redhead, T.D. 1979. On the demography of Rattus sordidus colletti in monsoonal Australia. Australian Journal of Ecology 4: 115-136
Taylor, J.M. & Horner, B.E. 1973. Reproductive characteristics of wild native Australian Rattus (Rodentia: Muridae). Australian Journal of Zoology 21: 437-475
Taylor, J.M. & Horner, B.E. 1973. Results of the Archbold Expeditions. No. 98. Systematics of native Australian Rattus (Rodentia, Muridae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 150: 1-130
Watts, C.H.S. 1982. The husbandry of Australian Rattus. pp. 177-179 in Evans, D.D. (ed.). The Management of Australian Mammals in Captivity. Proceedings of the Scientific Meeting of the Australian Mammal Society, Healesville, Victoria, February 1979. Melbourne : Zoological Board of Victoria 194 pp.
Watts, C.H.S. & Aslin, H.J. 1981. The Rodents of Australia. Sydney : Angus & Robertson xii 321 pp. 16 pls
Williams, C.K. 1987. Water physiology and nutrition in fluctuating populations of Rattus colletti in monsoonal Northern Territory, Australia. Australian Wildlife Research 14: 443-458
Williams, C.K. 1995. Dusky Rat Rattus colletti. pp. 648-649 in Strahan, R. (ed.). The Mammals of Australia: The National Photographic Index of Australian Wildlife. Sydney : Reed New Holland 756 pp.
Common Name References
ABRS 2001. Census of Australian Vertebrates. Australian Biological Resources Study (Dusky Rat)