Anourosorex squamaipes, 1872

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 : 447

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6870843
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6869890
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3D474A54-A01C-8770-FFF2-AEC81586FE95
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Anourosorex squamaipes
status

Treatment

144. View Plate 18: Soricidae

Chinese Mole Shrew

Anourosorex squamaipes View in CoL

French: Musaraigne taupe / German: Maulwurfspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana topo de China

Other common names: Chinese Short-tailed Shrew, Mole Shrew, Sichuan Burrowing Shrew

Taxonomy. Anourosorex squamipes Milne- Edwards, 1872 View in CoL ,

probably Moupin (= Baox- ing) , Sichuan, China.

Anourosorex squamipes is the type species of the genus, which was considered mono- typic until recently. Anourosorex squamipes used to include assamensis , schmidi , and yamashinai as subspecies, all of which are currently recognized as full species based on karyotypic differences between yamashinai and squamipes and morpho-

logical differences among assamensis , squamipes , and yamashinai . The forms capito and capnias are considered synonyms, both of which were collected in Yunnan, China. Anourosorex squamipes is sister to A. yamashinai . Specimens from Mizoram and Assam in India that were assigned to A. squamipes are obviously A. assamensis , which means that A. squamipes is not distributed in India. It is unclear where the distributional boundary is, especially between A. assamensis and A. squamipes . Monotypic.

Distribution. Widely distributed in C & S China (from S Gansu S to Guangdong), adjacent N & E Myanmar, N Laos, N Vietnam, and N Thailand. View Figure

Descriptive notes. Head-body 74-110 mm, tail 8-19 mm, hindfoot 11-16 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. Condylo-incisive lengths are 23-3-26-5 mm, and upper tooth rows are 10-7-12:6 mm. The Chinese Mole Shrew is medium-sized, characterized by small eyes and short tail. It resembles a shrew mole in external appearance but with smaller claws. Body fur is dense and lax. Dorsal pelage is black or dark grayish brown, and ventral pelage is slightly paler. Eyes are small. External ears are completely reduced, and only slim openings can be traced. Forefeet have lengthened claws. Tail is short and dark brown. It has a two upper unicuspids, and first is longer than second. Upper P*and M' are quadrangle, and M* is usually triangular. Upper M? is much reduced. Cusps of teeth are unpigmented. It has very strong smell. Dental formula for all species of Anourosorexis13/2, C0/0,P 1/1, M 3/3 (x2) = 26. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 48 and FNa = 92.

Habitat. Various habitats including broad-leaved, conifer, bamboo forests, subalpine shrubs, and grassland at elevations of 300-4000 m. The Chinese Mole Shrew is well adapted to anthropogenic habitats including farms, plantations, gardens, and parks.

Food and Feeding. The Chinese Mole Shrew is insectivorous, foraging on a wide variety of invertebrates. Examination of stomach contents found earthworms, insects, insect larvae, spiders, and frogs. Captive individuals ate raw meat, eels, fish, and occasionally oatmeal.

Breeding. Breeding of the Chinese Mole Shrew in south-western China occurs in April-October. Litters have 3-5 young.

Activity patterns. Most Chinese Mole Shrews were trapped during dusk and at night. It is terrestrial and semi-fossorial, moving on the ground and frequently using tunnels.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Chinese Mole Shrew is among the most common species of shrews in China. It is considered a pest in Sichuan, because populations can be large in farmland. It is known to be a host of hantavirus. Population size is highly variable but unlikely to be declining overall.

Bibliography. Hutterer (1985, 2005), Kawada et al. (2014), Mandal & Das (1969), Mandal et al. (1995), Motokawa & Lin Liangkong (2002), Motokawa et al. (2004).

Figures

136. Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina hulophaga), 137. Northern Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina brevicaudus), 138. Southern Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina carolinensis), 139. Everglades Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina peninsulae), 140. Sherman’s Short-tailed Shrew (Blarina shermani), 141. Sichuan Short-tailed Shrew (Blarinella quadraticauda), 142. Burmese Short-tailed Shrew (Blarinella wardi), 143. Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew (Blarinella griselda), 144. Chinese Mole Shrew (Anourosorex squamaipes), 145. Taiwanese Mole Shrew (Anowrosorex yamashinai), 146. Assam Mole Shrew (Anowrosorex assamensis), 147. Giant Mole Shrew (Anourosorex schmid), 148. Desert Gray Shrew (Notiosorex crawfordi), 149. Cockrum’s Gray Shrew (Notiosorex cockrumi), 150. Large-eared Gray Shrew (Notiosorex evolis), 151. Villa’s Gray Shrew (Notiosorex villa), 152. Mexican Shrew (Megasorex gigas), 153. Taiwanese Brown-toothed (Shrew Epusoriculusfumidus), 154. Arboreal Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus macrurus), 155. Bailey's Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus baileyi), 156. Long-tailed Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus leucops), 157. Hodgson’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus caudatus), 158. Sichuan Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus sacratus), 159. Hidden Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus umbrinus), 160. Nepalese Brown-toothed Shrew (Episoriculus soluensis), 161. Himalayan Shrew (Soriculus nigrescens), 162. De Winton’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa hypsibia), 163. Pygmy Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa parva), 164. Smith’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa smithii), 165. Salenski’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa salenskii), 166. Dusky Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa furva), 167. Lesser Taiwanese Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa sodalis), 168. Van Sung’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa caovansunga), 169. Hoffmann’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa hoffmanni), 170. Lowe’s Brown-toothed Shrew (Chodsigoa parca), 171. Bornean Water Shrew (Chimarrogale phaeura), 172. Sumatran Water Shrew (Chimarrogale sumatrana), 173. Malayan Water Shrew (Chimarrogale hantu), 174. Chinese Water Shrew (Chimarrogale styani), 175. Himalayan Water Shrew (Chimarrogale himalayica), 176. Leander’s Water Shrew (Chimarrogale leander), 177. Japanese Water Shrew (Chimarrogale platycephala), 178. Elegant Water Shrew (Nectogale elegans), 179. Mediterranean Water Shrew (Neomys anomalus), 180. Transcaucasian Water (Shrew Neomysteres), 181. Eurasian Water Shrew (Neomys fodiens)