Crateromys

The Borken climbers ( Crateromys ) are a genus of very large rodents of the Philippines. In English, they are known for their habitat in the top region of mountain rain forests under names such as Cloud or Cloud Runner Board (clouds runners, clouds rats).

There are four known species of this genus. Only one ( damage Bergs Borken rat) is reasonably well understood, the other three are largely enigmatic rarities:

• Damage Bergs Borken rat ( Crateromys schadenbergi ) on Luzon,
• Dinagat - Borken rat ( Crateromys australis) on Dinagat,
• Ilin - Borken rat ( Crateromys paulus ) on Ilin and
• Panay - Borken rat ( Crateromys heaneyi ) on Panay

Damage Bergs Borken rat

After the giant rats Borken ( Phloeomys ) this is the largest rodent in the Philippines. Its body length is 33 to 39 inches, added 36 to 47 cm tail. The extremely dense and woolly fur is very variable. Mostly it is gray on the top brown or black and hand. Often there are white spots or a wide white horizontal stripes on the shoulders. The tail is very hairy and bushy, which in this scale is unique in the family of long-tailed mice.

In the northern mountain rain forests of the island of Luzon damage Bergs Borken rat is quite common. Since the distribution is very limited and the forest is also threatened by deforestation, it is still considered " critically endangered " by the IUCN ( endangered ) out. It is active at night and sleeps during the day in tree hollows. Their calls are so shrill and high that remind them of the vocalizations of cicadas. The food is tree bark, buds and fruit. Because their fur this Borken rat is hunted by some locals; the fur is then sold at local markets.

The other species

The Dinagat - Borken rat is only known from a single specimen, which was on the island of Dinagat (north of Mindanao ) found. With a body length of 26 centimeters and a 28 cm long tail it is significantly smaller than harm Berg Borken rat. Nothing else is known about the species. THe IUCN lists them as " threatened with extinction " ( critically endangered ).

It was not until 1996, the Panay - Borken rat was described as the last of the species. A few copies of this very rare animal were found in the western mountains of the island of Panay. They were about the same as the aforementioned type and had a brown coat color. This species is " endangered " ( endangered )

The Ilin - Borken rat is known from only one specimen, which was found on the tiny island of Ilin south of Mindoro. The zoologist Pritchard sought in 1988 the island for further copies from, but found no and explained hereafter, the enigmatic nature of extinct. Unconfirmed reports suggest but then, that this kind on Mindoro is itself home, where were previously known only no Borken climbers. The only known specimen had a body length of 25 centimeters and a 21 cm long tail. The coat was gray-brown on the upper side and lower side white.

System

Previously, Borken climbers were attributed to the now-defunct " Borken rats ". Today they are classified in the genus Phloeomys group, a primitive, widespread in the Philippines Radiation of Altweltmäuse.