The Philippine forest rat (''Rattus everetti'') is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

in the family

Muridae The Muridae, or murids, are the largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 1,383 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. The name Muridae come ...

. It is found only in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, and is located throughout the archipelago. The scientific name commemorates British colonial administrator and zoological collector Alfred Hart Everett. R. everetti is widespread throughout its range and feeds on a diet of worms and insects. There are no major threats to the species, which has been found to be competitively superior to introduced ''Rattus'' species.

References

* Baillie, J. 1996.
Rattus everetti

2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Downloaded on 19 July 2007. * Rattus Rats of Asia Endemic fauna of the Philippines Rodents of the Philippines Mammals described in 1879 Taxa named by Albert Günther Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Rattus-stub