| Cloud rats | |
|---|---|
| Phloeomys pallidus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Muridae |
| Subfamily: | Murinae in part |
| Genera | |
The cloud rats are a group of arboreal and folivorous[1] nocturnal rodents native to the forests of the Philippines. There are six known species of cloud rat. These animals have not been studied extensively. The Filipino Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau has begun breeding Northern Luzon slender-tailed cloud rats in captivity. London Zoo, Prague Zoo and the Bronx Zoo are the only locations outside of the Philippines where cloud rats are bred in captivity.[2] Some species of cloud rats are kept in the mini-zoo of the College of Agriculture and Forestry of the West Visayas State University in their Lambunao campus in the province of Iloilo. Cloud rats are slow-moving herbivores and are thought to be preyed upon by large birds. The rats are quite large, and they have been hunted by people in the Philippines for their meat, driving the rodents to near extinction.