Status and conservation of the rodents of Tasmania

Abstract

Compared with mainland Australia the diversity of rodents in Tasmania is low. In all, there are five species of native rodent in Tasmania. Three species – the water rat, Hydromys chrysogaster, the long-tailed mouse,Pseudomys higginsi and the swamp rat, Rattus lutreolus – are widely distributed. The broad-toothed rat, Mastacomys fuscus, is restricted to moorlands in western Tasmania, while the New Holland mouse, Pseudomys novaehollandiae, is restricted to coastal heath in north-eastern Tasmania and is listed as Rare under Tasmania’s Threatened Species Protection Act 1995. Only one species, Pseudomys higginsi, is endemic to Tasmania. Rattus lutreolus velutinus and Mastacomys fuscus fuscus are endemic subspecies. In addition to the native rodents, three species of exotic rodents are well established in Tasmania.