Parascaptor lewcurus, Gill, 1875

Russell A. Mittermeier & Don E. Wilson, 2018, Talpidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 8 Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 52-619 : 619

53.

White-tailed Mole

Parascaptor lewcurus

French: Taupe a queue blanche / German: Weil 3schwanzmaulwurf / Spanish: Topo de cola blanca

Other common names: Assamese Mole, Blyth's Mole, Indian Mole

Taxonomy. Talpa leucura Blyth, 1850 ,

“Cherra Punji [= Cherrapunji] (N. Of Sylhet),”

Khasi Hills, Meghalaya, India.

Parascaptor leucurus is the only extant species of Parascaptor . Widely used specific name leucura has been changed for gender agreement. Molecular and morphological studies suggest existence of some cryptic unnamed species. Monotypic.

Distribution. NE India (Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, and Mizoram), Bangladesh, Myanmar (= Burma), and China (Sichuan and Yunnan); probably in Arunachal Pradesh, N of Brahmaputra River, and N Laos.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 115-126 mm, tail 10-14 mm, hindfoot 14-15 mm; weight 36-47-1 g. Tail of the White-tailed Mole is 8:3-11-8% of head-body length. Pelage is dark blackish

brown. Tail is very short and club-shaped, usually with white hairs. Dental formula is 13/3,C1/1,P 3/4, M 3/3 (x2) = 42. Chromosomal complement from Myanmar has 2n = 34 and FNa = 58.

Habitat. Hills and plains at elevations of 400-3000 m. In Myanmar, the White-tailed Mole is known from farmland and around farmers’ residences surrounded by or in contact with mountain forests.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. The White-tailed Mole is fossorial.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red Lust.

Bibliography. Choudhury (1997 2016), He, Bai Ming et al. (2013), He, Shinohara et al. (2014), Hoffmann & Lunde (2008), Kawada (2016), Kawada et al. (2016).

Figures

22. Altai Mole (Talpa altaica), 23. Pere David’s Mole (Talpa davidiana), 24. Talysch Mole (Talpa talyschensis), 25. Ognev’s Mole (Talpa ognevi), 26. Caucasian Mole (Talpa caucasica), 27. Levant Mole (Talpa levantis), 28. Balkan Mole (Talpa stankovici), 29. Blind Mole (Talpa caeca), 30. Roman Mole (Talpa romana), 31. Iberian Mole (Talpa occidentalis), 32. European Mole (Talpa europaea), 33. Aquitanian Mole (Talpa aquitania), 34. Japanese Mountain Mole (Oreoscaptor mizura), 35. Ussuri Mole (Mogera robusta), 36. Large Japanese Mole (Mogera wogura), 37. Small Japanese Mole (Mogera imaizumii), 38. Sado Mole (Mogera tokudae), 39. Echigo Mole (Mogera etigo), 40. Senkaku Mole (Mogera uchidai), 41. Insular Mole (Mogera insularis), 42. Kano’s Mole (Mogera kanoana), 43. La Touche’s Mole (Mogera latoucher), 44. Himalayan Mole (Ewroscaptor micrurus), 45. Greater Chinese Mole (Euroscaptor grandis), 46. Long-nosed Mole (Euroscaptor longurostris), 47. Kloss’s Mole (Euroscaptor klosst), 48. Kuznetsov’s Mole (Euroscaptor kuznetsovi), 49. Orlov’s Mole (Euroscaptor orlovi), 50. Vietnamese Mole (Euroscaptor subanura), 51. Small-toothed Mole (Euroscaptor parvidens), 52. Malaysian Mole (Euroscaptor malayanus), 53. White-tailed Mole (Parascaptor lewcurus), 54. Short-faced Mole (Scaptochirus moschatus)

Distribution. NE India (Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, and Mizoram), Bangladesh, Myanmar (= Burma), and China (Sichuan and Yunnan); probably in Arunachal Pradesh, N of Brahmaputra River, and N Laos.