🐀 Bramble Cay Melomys (Also known as the Bramble Cay mosaic
🐀 Bramble Cay Melomys
(Also known as the Bramble Cay mosaic-tailed rat)
🔬 Scientific Classification:
• Family: Muridae (the family that includes rats and mice)
• Subfamily: Murinae (Old World rats and mice)
• Species: Melomys rubicola
📍 Endemic Habitat:
• This species was endemic to Bramble Cay, a tiny, isolated coral island.
• Location: Northern tip of the Great Barrier Reef, in the Torres Strait, Australia.
• Habitable area of the island: Only about 5 acres (approximately 2 hectares)
⚠️ Extinction:
• Officially declared extinct: 2016
• Primary cause: Climate change
• Rising sea levels flooded the island repeatedly
• This destroyed the vegetation they depended on for food and shelter
• The species could not survive the loss of habitat
❗ Significance:
• This is considered the first recorded mammal extinction directly caused by human-induced climate change.
• It became a symbol of how vulnerable island ecosystems and species with limited ranges are to global environmental changes.
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