Myosorex longicaudatus, Meester & Dippenaar, 1978
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6870843 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6870551 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3D474A54-A0BE-87D2-FF21-AA9B132FF75E |
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treatment provided by |
Felipe |
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scientific name |
Myosorex longicaudatus |
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Long-tailed Mouse Shrew
Myosorex longicaudatus View in CoL
French: Musaraigne de Knysna / German: Langschwanz-Mausspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana ratén de cola larga
Other common names: Long-tailed Forest Shrew
Taxonomy. Myosorex longicaudatus Meester & Dippenaar, 1978 View in CoL ,
Diepwalle State Forest Station , 14 km NNE of Knysna (33° 57’ S, 23° 10’ E), Western Cape Province, South Africa. GoogleMaps
Sister to M. geata and M. kihaulei , based on genetic studies. Two subspecies recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
M.l.longicaudatusMeester&Dippenaar,1978—KnysnaForest,SWSouthAfrica.
M. l. boosnami Dippenaar, 1995 — Boosmansbos Forest and Langeberg Mts, SW South Africa. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 73-93 mm, tail 46-79 mm, ear 10-12 mm, hindfoot 14-19 mm; weight 9-21 g. The Long-tailed Mouse Shrew is a medium-sized shrew with a noticeably longer tail than in congeners. Male generally weighs more than female. Dorsal pelage is dark gray, heavily washed with grayish yellow, brown, or brownish black, the hairs being slaty gray basally with off-white to buffy subterminal band and dark brown tip; ventral pelage is a somewhat paler dark gray, washed with brownish black to dark brown, the hairs slaty gray with a buffy tip. Feet are brownish black, grayish yellow brown, or dull yellowish brown dorsally. Tail is long (c.79% of head-body length), covered in hair, and somewhat bicolored, brownish black above and variably paler below. Females have six inguinal nipples. Race boosnami has a more slender rostrum, shallower braincase, usually narrower p', and usually shorter but wider M®. There are four unicuspids.
Habitat. Recorded from primary forest, forest ecotones, fynbos, and boggy grassland at elevations of 240-3600 m, although normally occurring only up to 2000 m.
Food and Feeding. Based on stomach samples, Long-tailed Mouse Shrews are insectivorous but also feed on seeds. In captivity, they feed on a variety of insects, mealworms, and minced meats.
Breeding. No information.
Activity patterns. The Long-tailed Mouse Shrew seems to be an able climber, and uses its tail in a prehensile fashion when descending from objects.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List. The Longtailed Mouse Shrew is threatened by habitat destruction through deforestation, butis still relatively common where it survives.
Bibliography. Baxter (2008a), Dippenaar (1995), Dippenaar & Baxter (2013c), Meester & Dippenaar (1978), Taylor et al. (2013).
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.
