White-tailed rat spotted in Gujarat

Ahmedabad: A rare white-tailed wood rat which is not a native of Gujarat was found dead in Shoolpaneshwar Sanctuary in Narmada district.
The white-tailed wood rat is endemic to South Asia. The species is distributed in Bangladesh (Sathira), India and Sri Lanka. The rat is found mainly in Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and West Bengal.
Deputy conservator of forest, Narmada, Sandeep Kumar, said that during the rounds in the jungle he spotted a rat which was crushed by a speeding vehicle.On closely examining the rodent, he found that half of its tail was white.
On further examination he realized that it was a white-tailed wood rat which is usually not found in Gujarat. Kumar said that the distribution range shows that the rodent is found in southern and central parts of the country.
A senior officer from the forest department revealed that so far no study has been undertaken to ascertain the number of this species in Gujarat which is different from the normal rat. The officer said that there is a need to take up a detailed study on the species and there could be more of them in the state. The officer said that even the International Union for Conservation of Nature report does not mention Gujarat as a habitat for this species. It appears that the rodent was not an old one as its feet were not white. Usually, the feet are white in adult, while it is brownish white in youngsters and hence, it appears that the rat might be young.