jig D.J. Kitchener, A. Suyanto 
Table 1 Measurements (in mm) of the skull, dentition and external body and weight of Melomys howi holotype and 
para types. 
CHARACTER 
Holotype 
MZB15912 
WAM 
M44754 
WAM 
M44755 
Sex 
9 
9 
<J 
Greatest skull length 
32.19 
31.17 
33.93 
Condyloincisor length 
29.91 
28.60 
31.73 
Zygomatic width 
16.16 
16.29 
- 
Interorbital breadth 
4.61 
4.90 
4.96 
Interparietal breadth 
8.76 
9.12 
9.07 
Braincase breadth 
12.87 
13.56 
- 
Mastoid width 
11.44 
11.63 
- 
Nasal length 
12.25 
11.29 
12.10 
Nasal breadth 
4.00 
3.78 
4.22 
Zygomatic plate breadth 
4.37 
4.34 
4.90 
Diastema length 
8.42 
7.59 
9.56 
Height muzzle (behind ant. pal. for.) 
8.10 
8.05 
8.66 
Palatal length 
16.29 
15.16 
17.21 
Ant. palatal foramen length 
5.56 
4.84 
5.95 
Ant. palatal foramen breadth 
2.00 
2.03 
2.13 
Mesopterygoid fossa breadth 
2.49 
2.58 
2.71 
M'-M 1 breadth (inside) 
2.65 
2.53 
2.57 
Bulla length 
4.72 
4.60 
4.59 
M'-M 3 crown length 
6.02 
6.11 
5.98 
M'-M 3 alveoli length 
6.14 
6.37 
6.42 
M' crown length 
3.12 
3.16 
3.02 
M' crown breadth 
1.79 
1.89 
1.79 
M 2 crown length 
2.37 
2.25 
2.13 
M 2 crown breadth 
1.77 
1.82 
1.80 
M 3 crown length 
1.25 
1.18 
1.42 
M 3 crown breath 
1.33 
1.24 
1.33 
Dentary length 
18.92 
18.24 
20.14 
M,M 3 (crown) length 
6.21 
6.07 
- 
Snout to vent length 
112.2 
111.5 
- 
Tail to vent length 
135.6 
137.2 
- 
Ear length (from basal notch) 
15.5 
15.2 
- 
Pes length (without daw) 
27.2 
26.0 
- 
Pes breadth to base of digit V 
7.7 
7.2 
- 
Tibia length 
37.0 
32.7 
- 
Weight (gm) 
73 
61 
- 
Scale No./cm 
12.2 ± 0.8 
12.7 ± 0.7 
- 
postglenoid foramen large, projects dorsally to 
form crescent shape; temporal ridges faint, 
immediately anterior to frontal/parietal suture; 
rostrum posterolateral swelling only slightly 
inflated; anterior palatal foramen long (4.8-6.0) but 
terminate posteriorly anterior of M 1 anterior 
alveolus, slightly bowed outwards; palate narrow, 
posterior part highly fenestrated, terminating 
posteriorly at a point level with anterior part of M 3 ; 
mesopterygoid and parapterygoid fossae narrow; 
foramen ovale ventral fossa large; bulla moderately 
long (4.6-4.7), moderately inflated, with short and 
robust eustachian process. 
Dentition (Figure 2) 
Molars moderately large, M 3 cusp very long for 
Melomys (see Menzies 1990, Figure 3), M 3 cusp 
length 20-22% length of M 1 ' 3 cusp length; M 1 
anterior and intermediate lamellae with very well 
developed lingual cusps; posterior lamella without 
lingual cusp but with spacious posterior cingulum 
with a central vestigial cusp; M 2 with moderately 
large anterolingual cusp only remaining of anterior 
lamella, intermediate and posterior lamellae well 
developed - the latter with posterior cingulum and 
central vestigial cusp as on M 1 . M 3 with small 
anterolingual cusp, separate from posterior 
