It is hard to guess what a Summit rat weights. But we have the answer:
An adult Summit rat (Rattus baluensis) on average weights 107 grams (0.24 lbs).
The Summit rat is from the family Muridae (genus: Rattus). When reaching adult age, they grow up to 19 cm (0′ 8″).
As a reference: An average human weights in at 62 kg (137 lbs) and reaches an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). Humans spend 280 days (40 weeks) in the womb of their mother and reach around 75 years of age.
The summit rat (Rattus baluensis) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found only on Mount Kinabalu and Mount Tambuyukon, Malaysia, and has been recorded at altitudes of between 1,524 and 3,810 m.. The rat populations from these two peaks were connected in the Holocene. However, nowadays they are genetically isolated despite they are only 18 km apart. With current predictions of Global warming, the suitable habitat for Rattus baluensis is expected to shift around 500 m upwards. This will put the population in Mount Tambuyukon at risk. However, the population in Mount Kinabalu will likely survive in its upper slopes.The summit rat has a mutualistic relationship with a species of giant pitcher plant, Nepenthes rajah. Like the treeshrew Tupaia montana, it defecates into the plant’s traps while visiting them to feed on sweet, fruity secretions from glands on the pitcher lids.
Animals of the same family as a Summit rat
We found other animals of the Muridae family:
- Oecomys speciosus with a weight of 73 grams
- Red-bellied mosaic-tailed rat with a weight of 79 grams
- Buff-bellied climbing mouse with a weight of 89 grams
- Silver mountain vole with a weight of 37 grams
- Chelemys megalonyx with a weight of 50 grams
- Turkestan rat with 4 babies per litter
- Smoky mouse with a weight of 68 grams
- Rupp’s mouse with a weight of 49 grams
- Grey dwarf hamster with a weight of 30 grams
- Abrothrix longipilis with a weight of 38 grams
Animals with the same weight as a Summit rat
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Rattus baluensis:
- White-bellied mosaic-tailed rat bringing 104 grams to the scale
- Brooke’s squirrel bringing 114 grams to the scale
- Eastern mole bringing 87 grams to the scale
- Long-haired rousette bringing 104 grams to the scale
- European water vole bringing 120 grams to the scale
- Franquet’s epauletted fruit bat bringing 119 grams to the scale
- Golden hamster bringing 98 grams to the scale
- Thomas’s bushbaby bringing 117 grams to the scale
- Savanna gerbil bringing 121 grams to the scale
- Pará spiny tree-rat bringing 108 grams to the scale
Animals with the same size as a Summit rat
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Summit rat:
- Robust yellow bat with a size of 15.2 cm (0′ 6″)
- Four-toed elephant shrew with a size of 19.2 cm (0′ 8″)
- Vogelkop ringtail possum with a size of 21.6 cm (0′ 9″)
- Smoky pocket gopher with a size of 19.2 cm (0′ 8″)
- Ricefield rat with a size of 19.3 cm (0′ 8″)
- Kintampo rope squirrel with a size of 18.3 cm (0′ 8″)
- Bryant’s woodrat with a size of 20.9 cm (0′ 9″)
- Northern Palawan tree squirrel with a size of 21 cm (0′ 9″)
- Large-eared pika with a size of 17.8 cm (0′ 8″)
- Mohave ground squirrel with a size of 15.7 cm (0′ 7″)