Crocidura zimmermanni, Wettstein, 1953
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6870843 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6870279 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3D474A54-A047-872B-FFF6-A9B413CFF41C |
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treatment provided by |
Felipe |
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scientific name |
Crocidura zimmermanni |
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Cretan White-toothed Shrew
Crocidura zimmermanni View in CoL
French: Crocidure de Zimmermann / German: Kreta-Spitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de Creta
Other common names: Cretan Shrew
Taxonomy. Crocidura russula zimmermanni Wettstein, 1953 View in CoL ,
Nida Plateau , Ida Mountains , Crete, Greece.
Originally considered a subspecies of C. russula but in 1978 I. Vesmanis and H. Kahmann classified it as a full species based on morphological characteristics; species rank was also supported by its special karyotype of 2n = 34. In 1986, J. W. F. Reumer suggested that C. zommermanni represented a relict population of a Pleis-
tocene species. Results of molecular biological research by S. Dubey and others in 2008 and P. Vogel and colleagues in 2006 showed that it is basal taxon to a primary North African clade that includes C. canariensis , C. sicula , and C. tarfayensis . Also, investigations on mitochondrial and nuclear genes by Dubey and others indicate a closer relationship to some African shrews than to Asian species, and place C. zimmermanni as a sister taxon to C. luna of central East Africa. Monotypic.
Distribution. Crete I (Greece), mainly in C mountain areas, including Nida and Omalos plateaus. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head—body 65-78 mm, tail 35-42 mm, ear 7-2-13 mm, hindfoot 12-14 mm; weight 7-8 g. Males are slightly larger than females, and Recent individuals are larger than those from the Pleistocene; there are also indications of differences in size between central and western populations. In summer, fur is gray-brown on the dorsum, grayer and not as dark as that of the Lesser White-toothed Shrew ( C. suaveolens ); underparts are covered with lighter brownish gray hair; there is no clear dividing line between dorsal and ventral areas; the pelage of the foreand hindfeet is pale; not known if fur color changes in winter. Skull is like that of the Lesser White-toothed Shrew, but with a more elongated rostrum, and mandibles too are longer and slenderer. Condylo-incisive length 18-7-21 mm; the third upper unicuspid is higher than the parastyle of the upper premolar; the first and second unicuspids are also relatively large compared with those of the Lesser White-toothed Shrew.
Habitat. Mountainous areas (altitudes of 140-1400 m) covered with shrubland and characterized by harsh climate conditions, such as snow in winter and aridity in summer. Within these zones, the Cretan White-toothed Shrew is primarily found in humid places with moss cushions under barberry-bushes (Berbers cretica, Berberidaceae ). Recent records at lower altitudes (140-830 m) come exclusively from owl pellets. Subfossil records in coastal areas are also known, but the preferred habitats in lowland and coastal areas are unknown.
Food and Feeding. No information.
Breeding. No information.
Activity patterns. Cretan White-toothed Shrews are terrestrial. Some records from common barn-owl (Tyto alba) pellets could be an indication of nocturnal or crepuscular behavior.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List. Population is probably decreasing. The Cretan White-toothed Shrew is threatened by habitat loss, and at lower altitudes it seems to be outcompeted by the the probably introduced subspecies of Giildenstiadt’s White-toothed Shrew (C. g. gueldenstaedtii ) (c.3550-3700 BC); this could ultimately lead to extinction. The species is protected under Appendix III of the Bern Convention, but further research and specific conservation actions are required.
Bibliography. Aulagnier et al. (2008), Corbet (1978), Dubey, Koyasu et al. (2008), Dubey, Salamin et al. (2008), van der Geer et al. (2010), Gérner & Hackethal (1988), Hutterer (2005b), Pieper (1990), Reumer(1986), Reumer & Payne (1986), Sakoulis (2008), Vesmanis & Kahmann (1978), Vogel (1986, 1999b), Vogelet al. (2006), Vohralik (2008), Wettstein (1953).
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.
