Leopoldamys_milleti
Millet's leopoldamys
Species of rodent
Millet's leopoldamys (Leopoldamys milleti) is a species of rodent from the family Muridae. It lives in the Langbian highlands of southern Vietnam, although its distribution limits are currently unresolved.[1] It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, and though only a handful of museum specimens signify its existence, it is presumed to have a high, stable population.[1] There are no apparent major threats to the species, and it occurs in a number of protected Vietnamese areas.[1] Millet's leopoldamys is a large, terrestrial omnivore that prefers montane forest, but is tolerant of secondary forest.[1]
Millet's leopoldamys was originally recognized in 1922 by Herbert Christopher Robinson and Cecil Boden Kloss as a "remarkably distinct race" of Edwards's long-tailed giant rat.[2] It remained described as such, while the Edwards's long-tailed giant rat went back and forth between the genera Rattus and Leopoldamys.[2] However, Millet's leopoldamys is distinct from Edwards's long-tailed giant rat by its much darker dorsal pelage and larger bullae.[2] Robinson and Kloss later noted that Millet's leopoldamys had a similar appearance to Bower's white-toothed rat, and a more recent specimen was initially identified as such.[2]
