''Condylura'' is a genus of moles that contains a single extant species, the

star-nosed mole The star-nosed mole (''Condylura cristata'') is a small semiaquatic mole (animal), mole found in moist, low areas in the northern parts of North America. It is the only Extant taxon, extant member of the tribe Condylurini and genus ''Condylura ...

''(Condylura cristata)'' endemic to the northern parts of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. It is also the only living member of the tribe Condylurini. While today endemic to

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

, fossil evidence suggests the genus was once much more widespread, with two named species (''C. kowalskii'' and ''C izabellae'') known from the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

and an unnamed species from the Mid

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

. ''Condylura'' is classified along with other New World moles in the subfamily

Scalopinae The Scalopinae, or New World moles, are one of three subfamilies of the family Talpidae, which consists of moles and mole-like animals; the other two subfamilies being the Old World talpids (the Talpinae) and the Chinese shrew-like moles (Uropsil ...

by most authorities; however, more recent studies suggest that it occupies a much more basal position in

Talpidae The family Talpidae () includes the moles (some of whom are called shrew moles and desmans) who are small insectivorous mammals of the order Eulipotyphla. Talpids are all digging animals to various degrees: moles are completely subterranean a ...

, being sister to a clade comprising the fossil genus '' Geotrypus'', all living

Talpinae The subfamily Talpinae, sometimes called "Old World moles" or "Old World moles and relatives", is one of three subfamilies of the mole family Talpidae, the others being the Scalopinae, or New World moles, and the Uropsilinae, or shrew-like moles. ...

, and all

Scalopini The Scalopini are a tribe of moles belonging to the family Talpidae. They include all the New World moles apart from the strikingly distinctive star-nosed mole. As the similarity of the names implies, they are the standard form of the Scalopinae ...

. The extinct genus '' Eotalpa'' could potentially be a sister genus to it.

References

Mammal genera Mammal genera with one living species Talpidae {{mammal-stub