Rossel Island melomys

The Rossel Island melomys, Melomys arcium, is a rodent of the family Muridae endemic to Rossel Island in Papua New Guinea. Flannery, writing in 1955, presumed that it once lived on other islands of the group but has become extinct on all except Rossel. For many years it was treated as a subspecies of the white-bellied mosaic-tailed rat, but it is now considered a distinct species. The IUCN lists it as Data Deficient because little is known of its population status, ecological requirements and threats. It has not been officially recorded since 1956, although its habitat is still in good condition, and the IUCN rates determining its population status as a high priority.