Crocidura ansellorum, Hutterer & Dippenaar, 1987
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6870843 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6870510 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3D474A54-A0B8-87D4-FAFA-A9891790F52A |
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treatment provided by |
Felipe |
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scientific name |
Crocidura ansellorum |
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Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew
Crocidura ansellorum View in CoL
French: Crocidure des Ansell / German: Ansell-WeilRzahnspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de Ansell
Other common names: Ansell's Shrew
Taxonomy. Crocidura ansellorum Hutterer & Dippenaar, 1987 View in CoL ,
Kasombu stream (= Isombu River) , 4100 feet (= 1250 m), Mwinilunga District, Zambia.
Based on three specimens, Crocidura ansel- lorum was originally named C. anselli and subsequently emended to C. ansellorum by R. Hutterer and N. J. Dippenaar in 1987. Sister species of C. ansellorum appears to be poorly known C. bottegi and C. ludia . Phylogenetic relationships are still unre-
solved. Monotypic.
Distribution. Known from gallery forests in NW Zambia; restricted to Ikelenge Pedicle and collected along Kazombi Stream. It is possible that this species also occurs in adjacent DR Congo and E Angola, but no surveys have been undertaken for this species in these areas. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head—body 56-58 mm, tail 41-51 mm, ear 7-5-8 mm, hindfoot 10-5— 12 mm; weight 4-2-5 g. Condylo-incisive length is 16-8—-17-7 mm. Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew is small and comparable in size to the Bicolored African White-toothed Shrew ( C. fuscomurina ), a widely distributed savanna dweller, and Bottego’s White-toothed Shrew ( C. bottegi ). It is externally very similar to Bottego’s White-toothed Shrew. Pelage of Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew is soft, with hairs c.4 mm long. Dorsal pelage, ears, and limbs are dark chocolate-brown. Underparts are slightly washed with grayish brown, most notable on throat of holotype and less so in paratypes. Tail is ¢.80% of head-body length and grayish brown, with long bristle hairs restricted to proximal 51-60% ofits length. Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew is similar to the Dramatic White-toothed Shrew ( C. ludia ) but smaller in all external and cranial measurements, with wider braincase and maxillary region. The Bicolored African White-toothed Shrew is distinguished by bicolored appearance and pale tail with high pilosity; the Dramatic White-toothed Shrew is larger in all dimensions than Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew and is distributed in lowland forests. Skull is broad and high-domed. Interorbital region is short. I' is long and hooked. First unicuspid is large and pointed, and second and third are subequal in size.
Habitat. Patchy gallery forests. Ansell’s White-toothed Shrews occur in Mushitu forests (evergreen) that are generally no more than 100 m wide, along the catchment of the upper Zambezi River. This habitat is distributed along tributaries and is highly fragmented. A specimen was collected in leaf litter under gallery forest along Kazombi Stream.
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 Endangered on The IUCN Red List. Ansell’s White-toothed Shrew occurs in probably less than 500 km? because it is associated with narrow strips offorest alongside rivers. Its main threat is habitat loss due to agricultural expansion. Fires also regularly damage its habitat. It has been recorded in the Hillwood Farm private game ranch and Nchila Wildlife Reserve in Zambia.
Bibliography. Cotterill (2002), Hutterer (2005b, 2013d), Hutterer & Dippenaar (1987a, 1987b), Kennerley (2016p).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
