Duthie's golden mole (''Chlorotalpa duthieae'') is a species of

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...

in the family

Chrysochloridae Golden moles are small insectivorous burrowing mammals endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa. They comprise the family Chrysochloridae and as such they are taxonomically distinct from the true moles, family Talpidae, and other mole-like families, all o ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...

, temperate grassland, arable land, pastureland, plantations, rural gardens, and urban area. The specific name ''duthieae'' was given in honour of Dr. Augusta Vera Duthie, a South African botanist.

Description

Duthie's golden mole has a head-and-body length of between , with a short tail averaging . The upper parts are a lustrous reddish-black or brownish-black, while the underparts are greyish. There are pale markings on the muzzle and around the eyes. Males tend to be larger than females.

Distribution and habitat

Duthie's golden mole is

to South Africa where it only occurs in a coastal strip about in length to the west of

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

. There are two separate populations; the eastern population is in the environs of Port Elizabeth where it occurs in pasture, agricultural land and gardens. The western and larger population is between

Wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

and

Tsitsikamma The Tsitsikamma National Park is a protected area on the Garden Route, Western Cape and Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is a coastal reserve well known for its indigenous forests, dramatic coastline, and the Otter Trail. On 6 March 2009 it was ...

, where it occurs in

Southern Afrotemperate Forest Southern Afrotemperate Forest (the Southern Cape Forests) is a kind of tall, shady, multilayered indigenous South African forest. This is the main forest-type in the south-western part of South Africa, naturally extending from the Cape Peninsula ...

s, largely located within

national park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

s. The mole favours areas of sandy loam and alluvial sands.

Ecology

This mole digs an underground nest under the base of a tree, and creates shallow passages radiating out into the surrounding area. It forages, mainly at night, in these tunnels and in the leaf litter, feeding mainly on

earthworm An earthworm is a terrestrial invertebrate that belongs to the phylum Annelida. They exhibit a tube-within-a-tube body plan; they are externally segmented with corresponding internal segmentation; and they usually have setae on all segments. Th ...

s. Little is known of the animal's breeding habits, but one female was recorded as being pregnant in the spring (November) with a litter of two young. The

barn owl The barn owl (''Tyto alba'') is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds, being found almost everywhere except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalaya ...

is a predator of this species.

Status

This mole is fairly common in suitable habitats. The main threat it faces is from destruction of its habitat by coastal development and urbanization, which may lead to populations being further fragmented. Other threats include predation by domestic cats and dogs, persecution by gardeners and farmers, timber felling and replacement of native forests by plantation crops. For these reasons, the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed its conservation status as being " vulnerable".

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1767662 Afrosoricida Mammals of South Africa Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Mammals described in 1907 Endemic fauna of South Africa Taxa named by Robert Broom