Crocidurinae Milne-Edwards, 1872

Abramov, Alexei V., 2021, An annotated checklist of the insectivores (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla) of Laos, Zootaxa 5006 (1), pp. 13-25 : 19-21

Subfamily Crocidurinae Milne-Edwards, 1872

Suncus murinus ( Linnaeus, 1766) – Asian house shrew

Conservation Significance: Least Concern ( Hutterer et al. 2016).

Distribution: Widespread throughout the Indomalayan region ( Corbet & Hill 1992; Hutterer 2005). Many authors reported on the species as occurring across the entire territory of Laos ( Deuve 1972; Robinson 1999; Hutterer et al. 2016), although no exact records or localities were given.

Natural history: Synanthropic species, usually found near human settlements.

Suncus etruscus ( Savi, 1822) – Etruscan shrew, or pygmy white-toothed shrew

Conservation Significance: Least Concern (Aulagnier et al. 2016).

Distribution: In northern Laos, two specimens (kept in AMNH) were collected from Samphan County, Phongsali Province. In central Laos, it was found in Khammuan Limestone NBCA (specimens kept in BMNH, Smith et al. 1998).

Natural history: The species is poorly known in Indochina. Observations from Southeast Asia indicate that it inhabits different forest types, open grasslands and scrub. The Khammuan Limestone NBCA comprises the limestone karst with heavily degraded, mixed deciduous forest, scrub and bamboo at its base. Lowland areas away from the karst had been cleared for the cultivation of paddy rice ( Robinson, 1999). In adjacent Vietnam, the species occurs at the altitudes of 80–450 m.

Taxonomic notes: Widespread in the Indomalayan region ( Corbet & Hill 1992). The taxonomy of Southeast Asian S. etruscus is in need of a revision. Some of the taxa that were earlier included in S. etruscus (fellowesgordoni, hosei, madagascariensis, malayanus) were recently removed and treated as distinct species ( Hutterer 2005). A taxonomic rank of Indochinese populations remains unclear.

Crocidura dracula Thomas, 1912 – Chinese white-toothed shrew

Conservation Significance: Not assigned (Least Concern as C. fuliginosa – see Molur 2016c).

Distribution: Northern Laos. Delacour (1940) referred to it as a common shrew of north-eastern Laos, and Deuve (1972) recorded it from the north of the country. A specimen FMNH 32311 was collected from Muong Chao Noi, near Phongsali ( Osgood 1932). On the distribution maps of C. fuliginosa (see taxonomic notes below), Lekagul & McNeely (1977) and Corbet & Hill (1992) showed C. dracula to be widespread in Laos although made no reference to it in the text.

Natural history: Occurs in different forests types, preferring scrub along small streams. In Vietnam, it was found at the altitudes of 200–1500 m; in southern China, it is distributed up to 3000 m ( Allen 1938) .

Taxonomic notes: Many papers reported on C. fuliginosa (including dracula as its synonym) as being widespread in the mainland Southeast Asia ( Jenkins 1976; Lekagul & McNeely 1977; Corbet & Hill 1992; Hoffmann & Lunde 2008; Jenkins et al. 2009). However, recent comparative studies of the mitochondrial DNA ( Bannikova et al. 2011) did not confirm its wide distribution. Bannikova et al. (2011) proposed to re-establish the name C. dracula for the large white-toothed shrews from southern China and northern part of Indochina, including northern areas of Vietnam, Myanmar, and Laos.

Crocidura hilliana Jenkins, Smith, 1995 – Hill’s white-toothed shrew

Conservation Significance: Data Deficient ( Chiozza 2016a).

Distribution: Central Laos ( Smith et al. 1998). Specimens (kept in BMNH) collected from two localities in Khammuan Limestone NBCA – Tarn Jungvung and Tarn Dan Jar ( Smith et al. 1998). However, such limited range probably reflects the lack of knowledge resulted from limited survey works. Also found in north-eastern and central Thailand ( Jenkins & Smith 1995; Motokawa & Harada 1998).

Natural history: The habitats in Khammuan Limestone NBCA comprise the limestone karst with heavily degraded, mixed deciduous forest, scrub, bamboo and paddy rice fields at Ban Mauang and relatively undisturbed, semi-evergreen forest, with small areas of grazing grassland near Ban Vieng ( Robinson 1999).

Crocidura tanakae Kuroda, 1938 – Tanaka’s white-toothed shrew, or Taiwanese gray shrew

Conservation Significance: Least Concern ( Clayton 2016).

Distribution: Central Laos ( Bannikova et al. 2011). Genetically confirmed specimens (kept in ZIN) collected from Khammuan Province. The species is widespread throughout Vietnam ( Abramov et al. 2013a), thus it may occur in the adjacent regions of Laos. A large series of shrews from Phongsali, kept in AMNH and catalogued as “ C. attenuata ”, most probably belongs to C. tanakae .

Natural history: Known to occur in Vietnam from 300 up to 1700 m in different types of primary and secondary forests, shrubs, bamboo thickets and grasslands .

Taxonomic notes: Crocidura attenuata described originally from Sichuan, China, was regarded as a widespread and common species known throughout much of Asia ( Jenkins 1976; Corbet & Hill 1992; Hutterer 2005; Jenkins et al. 2009). Crocidura tanakae from Taiwan was subsequently considered to be either a synonym or a subspecies of C. attenuata ( Ellerman & Morrison-Scott 1951; Jameson & Jones 1977; Jiang & Hoffmann 2001). Recent karyological and molecular studies revealed that C. tanakae represents a distinct species ( Motokawa et al. 2001; Ohdachi et al. 2006; Esselstyn & Brown 2009). Furthermore, recent molecular studies suggested a broad geographic distribution of C. tanakae in Southeast Asia ( Esselstyn & Oliveros 2010; Bannikova et al. 2011). In contrast, the range of C. attenuata is much smaller than that of C. tanakae , being restricted to the mainland of China and Indochina ( Bannikova et al. 2011; Li et al. 2019).

? Crocidura vorax G. Allen, 1923 – Voracious white-toothed shrew

Conservation Significance: Least Concern ( Chiozza 2016b).

Distribution: Central and southern Laos (as Crocidura pullata vorax – see Smith et al. 1998). There are specific records from Xe Pian NBCA (located in Champasak and Attapeu provinces in southern Laos) and Khammuan Limestone NBCA ( Smith et al. 1998; Robinson 1999). The species range in Southeast Asia is poorly known due to an uncertain taxonomic composition of the species.

Natural history: In Xe Pian NBCA, a single specimen was caught in semi-evergreen forest near Ban Taong ( Robinson 1999). In Khammuan Limestone NBCA, the species was recorded among the prey remains of the carnivorous bat Lyraderma lyra, in an area comprising dense, relatively undisturbed, semi-evergreen forest surrounded by karst formations reaching the altitudes of 200–300 m and in an area of dense, relatively undisturbed, semi-evergreen forest, within small areas of grazing grassland ( Robinson 1999).

Taxonomic notes: The taxonomy of C. vorax is uncertain. Originally described by Allen (1923) from high mountains (4000 m) of Yunnan Province, southern China. Once thought to be a subspecies of the European C. russula ( Allen 1938; Ellerman & Morrison-Scott 1951), C. gueldenstaedtii ( Corbet & Hill 1992) , or the Asian C. pullata ( Hutterer 1993; Smith et al. 1998, 2000). According to the recent data ( Hutterer 2005; Jenkins 2013), C. pullata is restricted to the Western Himalayas only: viz., Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir. Jenkins et al. (2009) listed C. vorax for Yunnan only. The species identifications of Laotian and Thai populations listed currently as “ C. pullata vorax ” or “ C. vorax ” ( Allen & Coolidge 1940; Smith et al. 1998, 2000; Robinson 1999) need to be reinvestigated.

[ Crocidura sapaensis Jenkins, Abramov, Bannikova, Rozhnov, 2013 – Sapa white-toothed shrew]

Conservation Significance: Not assigned.

Distribution: No specific records from Laos, but found in neighbouring north-western Vietnam ( Jenkins et al. 2013), and thus may occur in the adjacent regions of northern Laos.

Taxonomic notes: Jenkins et al. (2009) reported on C. wuchihensis for northern Laos. Also there is a specimen AMNH 278585, catalogued as “ C. wuchihensis ”. However, this cryptic species is very similar in size and morphology to C. sapaensis , and can only be distinguished by molecular analysis ( Jenkins et al. 2013). According to genetic data ( Bannikova et al. 2011; Jenkins et al. 2013), C. wuchihensis s. str. occurs in south-eastern China and northeastern Vietnam to the east of Red River. Therefore, it is possible that the shrew from Phongsali could belong to C. sapaensis rather than to C. wuchihensis .

[ Crocidura ex gr. kegoensis – zaitsevi ]

Conservation Significance: Not assigned.

Distribution: No specific records from Laos, but widely distributed in neighbouring central Vietnam ( Abramov et al. 2013a), and thus may occur in the adjacent regions of central and southern Laos. It was reported by Deuve (1972) as C. horsfieldii (see taxonomic notes below) for Laos, but without exact records or localities. Some authors ( Lekagul & McNeely 1977; Corbet & Hill 1992; Hutterer 1993) reported on C. horsfieldii as being distributed throughout northern Indochina, including Lao territory.

Taxonomic notes: Small-sized Crocidura shrews from Indochina were usually identified as C. horsfieldii , but the holotype of horsfieldii was collected from Sri Lanka and specimens referred to this taxon from mainland East Asia are quite different from the holotype ( Lunde et al. 2003). The authors argue that the name horsfieldii should only be applied to the animals occurring in Sri Lanka and the adjacent Indian Peninsula, with the individuals referred to this species from Indochina actually representing a different species. Four species of the kegoensis – zaitsevi complex, viz. C. kegoensis Lunde, Musser, Ziegler, 2004 ; C. annamitensis Jenkins, Lunde, Moncrieff, 2009 ; C. guy Jenkins, Lunde, Moncrieff, 2009 and C. zaitsevi Jenkins, Abramov, Rozhnov, Makarova, 2007 , were recently described from Vietnam. The first three species are known from the type localities in central (Ha Tinh Province) and northern (Tuyen Quang Province) parts of Vietnam, whereas C. zaitsevi is widespread in southern and central Vietnam ( Abramov et al. 2013a).