It was named a new species in 1904 by Paul Matschie, a mammalian taxonomist working at the Humboldt University Zoological Museum in Berlin, but its populations were not systematically surveyed until 1987.
Hewan tersebut diangkat menjadi spesies baru pada 1904 oleh Paul Matschie, seorang taksonomis mamalia yang bekerja di Museum Zoologi Universitas Humboldt di Berlin, namun populasinya tak secara sistematis disurvei sampai 1987.