--- description: A new species of rat has been discovered on an Indonesian island. It has a pig-like nose and other unusual features title: Meet the Newly Discovered Hog-Nosed Rat image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte176ca8ec6ba42eb/698866fca988ca7a736b4ae3/hognose03c-museumvictoria.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [animals](/tag/animals/) ## animals Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A New Mammal Has Just Been Discovered and It's Called the Hog-Nosed Rat by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 6, 2015 9:26 AM CUT  This newly discovered species of rat is called Hyorhinomys stuempkei, or the hog-nosed rat This newly discovered species of rat is called Hyorhinomys stuempkei, or the hog-nosed ratMuseum Victoria by [Mark Rivett-Carnac](/author/mark-rivett-carnac/) ## Mark Rivett-Carnac Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 6, 2015 9:26 AM CUT It seems a little unfair to call anything in this world a hog-nosed rat, even when that thing is a rat with, well, a piglike nose. Unfortunately for _Hyorhinomys stuempkei_, a new species of rat [discovered](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34451265 "undefined") in Indonesia, that is its name and the zoology books are sealed. The unusual mammal has features uncommon in other rats and was discovered on Sulawesi island by researchers from Australia, Indonesia and the U.S., according to the BBC. “Obviously its nostrils which resemble a hog’s, are very unique. But it also has a long face and larger ears for a rat of its size and lower teeth which are more in common with shrew rats,” Museum Victoria’s mammal curator Kevin Rowe told the BBC. “It also has pubic hairs that are very long and extended, which we see in other Australian mammals,” he said. It took Rowe, who specializes in rodent evolution, six weeks to reach the remote area of the forest where the rat was discovered. He says very little is known about the rats. But one thing is fairly certain: they’re unlikely to become stars in any cute animal videos. \[[_BBC_](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34451265 "undefined")\] ### 26 of LIFE’s Best Animal Covers  February 8, 1937 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Charles J. Belden). LIFE Magazine  March 1, 1937 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Henry M. Lester). LIFE Magazine  April 26, 1937 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Torkel Korling). LIFE Magazine  July 26, 1937 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt). LIFE Magazine  January 10, 1938 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Lane Flinders). LIFE Magazine  December 12, 1938 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by George Karger). LIFE Magazine  April 3, 1944 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Nina Leen). LIFE Magazine  September 9, 1946 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Martha Holmes). LIFE Magazine  September 23, 1946 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by Frank Scherschel). LIFE Magazine  November 4, 1946 LIFE Magazine cover (photo by David Douglas Duncan). 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