Greater Bandicoot Rats (Bandicota indica) are Not Native to Sundaland Based on Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) Analyses

Abstract

Bandicoot rats (genus Bandicota) are distributed widely across the Indomalay biogeographic realm of tropical East Asia. One widely distributed species, the greater bandicoot rat (Bandicota indica), has a disjunct distribution including both north and south of the biogeographic break at the Isthmus of Kra. We compared genetic variation of greater bandicoot rats from north and south of the Isthmus of Kra using mitochondrial cytochrome b (cyt b, 1140 bp) and nuclear interphotoreceptor retinoid binding protein (IRBP, 801 bp) sequences. We found that the greater bandicoot rat (B. indica) is not native to Sundaland, the region south of the Isthmus of Kra. The species was introduced to the region recently as the genetic divergence with other regions is very low and phylogenies of both genes showed Malaysian greater bandicoot rat very closely related to conspecifics from Lao PDR. Haplotype data revealed all individuals from Malaysia are homogenous, which implied that the species was introduced recently. The greater bandicoot rats in Malaysia are so far only reported in the rice producing regions of Kedah and Perlis, but they may be increasing in number and distribution. A more detailed survey on the distribution and population demographics of Malaysian greater bandicoot rats are needed to support a management plan for this invasive species.