Abstract
Small mammals may influence forest dynamics in the Indo-Burma biodiversity “hotspot” by affecting forest regeneration through seed predation and dispersal and by functioning as prey for larger carnivores; however, little is known about small mammal communities in this region. I studied the microhabitat associations of small mammals in five protected reserves in the region, focusing on two generalist co-occurring murids: Rattus andamanensis and Niviventer fulvescens. R. andamanensis abundance increased with increased habitat complexity whereas N. fulvescens abundance responded positively to increased liana density and negatively to shrub density. The study indicates that these seemingly similar generalist species co-exist through habitat partitioning and sheds light on the habitat ecology of the poorly known and cryptic murid fauna occurring in Indo-Burmese forests.