Blarina hulophaga (Elliot, 1899)
|
publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6870843 |
|
DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6869876 |
|
persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/3D474A54-A018-8774-FFFB-AAF41AD1FAB9 |
|
treatment provided by |
Felipe |
|
scientific name |
Blarina hulophaga |
| status |
|
Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrew
French: Musaraigne d'Elliot / German: Elliot-Kurzschwanzspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana colicorta de Elliot
Taxonomy. Blarina brevicauda hulophaga Elliot, 1899 ,
“ Dougherty, Indian Territory ,” Murray County, Oklahoma, USA.
Original spelling “hulophaga” was amend- ed to “hylophaga” by D. G. Elliot in 1905, but this correction was unjustified and thus represents a junior synonym. Blarina hulophaga was described as a subspecies of B. brevicaudus and included under B. carolinensis until S. B. George and colleagues in 1981 recognized it as a distinct species.
S. V. Brant and G. Orti in 2002 determined that B. hulophaga was sister to a clade including B. brevicaudus and B. carolinensis . Two subspecies recognized.
Subspecies and Distribution.
B. h. plumbea W. B. Davis, 1941 — Bastrop and Aransas counties, SE Texas (S USA). View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head—body 72-96 mm, tail 19-27 mm, hindfoot 10-19 mm; weight 8-16 g. Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew is large and robust, similar to the larger Northern Short-tailed Shrew (B. brevicaudus). Pelage is short, soft, velvety, and considerably molelike, being shorter and slightly paler in summer. Dorsal pelage ranges from plumbeous gray (more common in plumbea) to brown or black (more common in hulophaga), generally with silvery tinge. Juveniles have shorter and fuzzier pelage, which can be hard to distinguish from adults in summer. Ventral pelage is somewhat paler gray, shorter, and denser than dorsal pelage. There is a bare patch of lightly colored skin around diminutive eyes; eyes can be so underdeveloped that eyelids cannot be opened. Ears are very small and completely concealed by fur; vibrissae are long and white. Tail is less than 30% of head-body length, hairy, and similar in color to dorsum, with small tuft at end. Feet are short and broad with long claws and paler than rest of body. Characteristic of the genus, Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew hasfive unicuspid teeth and significantly larger and angular skull than other shrews, being most readily distinguished from the Southern Short-tailed Shrew ( B. carolinensis ) by its largersize and from both the Southern Short-tailed Shrew and Northern Short-tailed Shrew by having a greater angle of I, from horizontal ramus and its unique karyotype. All species of Blarina also have reddish teeth from iron deposits in their teeth. Females have three pairs of inguinal mammae. About 29 species of parasites have been recorded from Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew, including two trematodes (e.g. Brachylaima and Panopistus), at least three nematodes (e.g. Longistriata), and 24 arthropod ectoparasites (e.g. Geomylichus, Neotrombicula, Mycoptes, Corrodopsylla, Glycyphagus, Androlaelaps, Olistrophorus, Blarinobia, Pygmephorus, Stenoponia, etc.), many of which are shared with other species of Blarina . They are reportedly somewhat venomous, being able to subdue prey withit, although these reports are somewhat dubious. Dental formula for all species of Blarninais I %3/1,C1/1, P3/1,M 3/3 (x2) = 32. Chromosomal complement has 2n = 52 and FN = 60-62.
Habitat. Variety of habitats, including mature oak/elm floodplain forests, other wooded floodplain communities (often found under decaying logs), woody ravines, grassy pastures near wooded areas, rocky grasslands, and dry grasslands. Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrews are generally found in moist areas with adequate soil or significant ground cover from fallen leaves in which to build extensive burrows. In Colorado, they have been collected in drier environments, with sandy substrates and dense vegetation. Burned and grazed areas are avoided, and when controlled burns are used, their abundance is negatively impacted.
Food and Feeding. Elliot's Short-tailed Shrews are primarily insectivorous, feeding on insects, snails, millipedes, earthworms, and grubs; they eat some plant material, fungi, and North American Deermice (Peromyscus maniculatus) to a lesser extent. Beetles generally make up the largest proportion oftheir diet, up to 50-:3% in Kansas, while other insects were up to 11:3%, spiders 7-3%, and slugs 21-2%. This contrasts with Northern Shorttailed Shrew and Southern Short-tailed Shrew that more commonly feed on earthworms and fungi, respectively. Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew might be similar to congeners in that it has similar venom that can be used to subdue prey, although this is unconfirmed. No hoarding behavior has been observed as in the Northern Short-tailed Shrew.
Breeding. Breeding of Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrew generally occurs from early spring to late summer and in February—October in Arkansas. Gestation lasts 21-22 days, and litters have 4-8 young. Up to three litters can be produced per season, although 1-2 seems most common. Lactating females have been recorded as late as September. Young are weaned after about a month and fully furred. After young are weaned, all maternal care ceases. They usually live 8-24 months.
Activity patterns. Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew is semi-fossorial and nocturnal/crepuscular, with peaks in activity occurring at dawn and dusk in all seasons. During active hours, they only rest for short bouts between feeding and moving. They do not hibernate but do molt between seasons. Tunnel runway systems are expansive and network across an area. They might create these runways themselves or use runways of moles or voles. Nests are built in tunnel systems and are a ¢.20 cm spherical chamber, lined with grass, plantfibers, or dry leaves.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrews are primarily solitary except when breeding or rearing young. Home ranges are 0-06-0-55 ha and vary between males (0-26 ha) and females (0-14 ha). They seem to be most abundant in autumn and least abundant in spring. Over the span of six and eight weeks, individual shrews reportedly traveled 270 m and 280 m, respectively. Similar to its congeners, Elliot's Short-tailed Shrews use echolocation by emitting ultrasonic clicks to navigate, and they have rudimentary senses of sight and smell.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Elliot's Short-tailed Shrew is common and widespread with no major threats, although it is considered rare with a limited distribution in Texas. Research into composition and potential uses of their venomous saliva is needed.
Bibliography. Baumgardner et al. (1992), Brant & Orti (2002), Cassola (2016h), Elliot (1899, 1905), George, Choate & Genoways (1981), George, Genoways et al. (1982), Hall (1981), Hutterer (2005b), Jones et al. (1984), Reid (2006), Reilly et al. (2005), Ritzi et al. (2005), Thompson et al. (2011).
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.
