Watson's climbing rat has a long, white-tipped tail and large ears. It uses trees at night but is also recorded on the ground around rocks and fallen logs.
Its long, soft coat is usually grayish brown above and white below. The long, hairless tail has a white tip, and it has large bare ears and long whiskers.
It is nocturnal and uses both trees and the ground. Its plant diet includes fruits, leaves, seeds, lichens, and bark.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.