Crocidura lusitania, Dollman, 1915

Russell A. Mittermeier & Don E. Wilson, 2018, Soricidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 8 Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 332-551 : 523

363.

Mauritanian White-toothed Shrew

Crocidura lusitania

French: Crocidure de Mauritanie / German: Mauretanien-Weifdzahnspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de Mauritania

Other common names: Mauritanian Shrew

Taxonomy. Crocidura lusitania Dollman, 1915 , Trarza country, Mauritania.

Based on recent genetic studies, C. lusi- tania seems to be sister to an unnamed species of Crocidura in a clade including C. crenata , C. fuscomurina , C. crossei , and C. jouvenetae . Monotypic.

Distribution. S Morocco and N Western Sahara, and from S Mauritania and Senegal E to W Niger and NW Nigeria, along with two highly isolated records in NW Eritrea and NC Ethiopia.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 45-68 mm, tail 29-37 mm, ear 5-8 mm, hindfoot 9-10 mm; weight 3-5-1 g. The Mauritanian White-toothed Shrew is very small to small, with very short pelage. Dorsum is cinnamon-brown, and venter is pure white (in Nigeria) to grayish (through much of the rest of the distribution). Lips, chin, throat, and feet are white. Hindfeet are short. Tail is ¢.56% of head-body length, very hairy, covered with longer bristle hairs, and bicolored, being ashy gray above and white below. Skull is very small and flat, with flat braincase; rostrum is short and broad; third unicuspid is broader than second; and M,is very small. There are three unicuspids. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 38 and FN = 64.

Habitat. Tree and bush savannas and cultivated fields in Senegal and sandy areas and coastal dunes along coasts. Mauritanian White-toothed Shrews have been found living in termite mounds.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Mauritanian White-toothed Shrew has a wide distribution and is considered common throughout much ofits distribution, with no major threats. It occurs in Awash National Park in Ethiopia.

Bibliography. Cassola (2016am), Cornette et al. (2015), Granjon & Duplantier (2013), Granjon et al. (2002), Hutterer (1986f), Maddalena & Ruedi (1994), Sidiyene (1989), Vogel et al. (2013), Yalden et al. (1996).

Figures

346. Mduma’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura mdumaz), 347. Montane White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura montis), 348. Newmark’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura newmarki), 349. Munissi’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura munissi), 350. Tanzanian White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura tansaniana), 351. Usambara White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura usambarae), 352. Kivu White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura kivuana), 353. Niobe’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura niobe), 354. Desert White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura smith), 355. Sahelian Tiny White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura pasha), 356. Roosevelt's White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura roosevelti), 357. Long-footed White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura crenata), 358. Grasse’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura grasset), 359. Bicolored African White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura fuscomurina), 360. Flat-headed White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura planiceps), 361. Crosse’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura crosser), 362. Jouvenet’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura jouvenetae), 363. Mauritanian White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura lusitania), 364. Naked-tailed White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura lttoralis), 365. Gracile White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura maurisca), 366. Reddish-gray White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura cyanea), 367. Swamp White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura mariquensis), 368. Lesser Gray-brown White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura silacea), 369. Dent's White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura denti), 370. Hildegarde’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura hildegardeae), 371. Mamfe White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura virgata), 372. Bates’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura batesi), 373. Sao Tome White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura thomensis), 374. Fingui White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura fingui), 375. Fraser’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura poensis), 376. Nigerian White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura nigeriae), 377. Hun White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura attila), 378. Fox’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura foxi), 379. Bittikofer’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura buettikoferi), 380. Therese’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura theresae), 381. Large-headed White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura grandiceps), 382. Wimmer’s White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura wimmenr), 383. African Black White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura nigrofusca), 384. Savanna Dwarf White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura nanilla), 385. Nimba White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura nimbae)

Distribution. S Morocco and N Western Sahara, and from S Mauritania and Senegal E to W Niger and NW Nigeria, along with two highly isolated records in NW Eritrea and NC Ethiopia.