Nectogalini is a

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

Old World The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...

water

shrew Shrews (family Soricidae) are small mole-like mammals classified in the order Eulipotyphla. True shrews are not to be confused with treeshrews, otter shrews, elephant shrews, West Indies shrews, or marsupial shrews, which belong to different fa ...

s within the family Soricidae. As of late 2007, it consisted of six extant

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

and 25

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, with some of the latter being further divided into

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

Adaptation to semiaquatic life

Members of this tribe that are associated with a

semiaquatic In biology, semiaquatic can refer to various types of animals that spend part of their time in water, or plants that naturally grow partially submerged in water. Examples are given below. Semiaquatic animals Semiaquatic animals include: * Verte ...

mode of life have developed several lifestyle adaptations. For example, some species in the

'' Chimarrogale'', ''

Nectogale The elegant water shrew (''Nectogale elegans'') is a species of mammal in the subfamily Soricinae of the family Soricidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Nectogale''. It lives in Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern In ...

'', ''

Neomys The genus ''Neomys'' is a group of three Eurasian water shrews from the subfamily Soricinae of the family Soricidae. These shrews are found in most of Europe and parts of northern Asia, as well as Turkey and Iran. Its member species are: * Eur ...

'', and ''

Sorex The genus ''Sorex'' includes many of the common shrews of Eurasia and North America, and contains at least 142 known species and subspecies. Members of this genus, known as long-tailed shrews, are the only members of the tribe Soricini of the su ...

'' have stiff hairs on the sides of their toes and feet, both on their fore and hind limbs. These increase the surface area of the feet, assisting in locomotion during swimming. In addition, species such as '' Neomys fodiens'' have developed elongated tails with the hairs forming a keel-like shape that is similar in function to a rudder when the animal is in the water.Churchfield, Sara, 1990. ''The Natural History of Shrews''. C. Helm/A & C Black, 178 pp.

Genera

'' Chimarrogale'' (6 species)
''

Chodsigoa ''Chodsigoa'' is a genus of shrews in the tribe Nectogalini. Species There are currently ten species classified under the genus ''Chodsigoa'': * Van Sung's shrew (''Chodsigoa caovansunga'') (Lunde, Musser and Son, 2003) *''? Chodsigoa hoffma ...

'' (10 species)
''

Episoriculus ''Episoriculus'' is a genus of shrew in the red-toothed shrew subfamily. Its common is brown-toothed shrew. It has been described as a subgenus to ''Soriculus'' in the past. The genus occurs at a number of locations in Asia, including Nepal and C ...

'' (4 species)
''

'' (monotypic)
''

'' (3 species)
''

Soriculus ''Soriculus'' is a genus of shrew native to Asia. The Himalayan shrew The Himalayan shrew (''Soriculus nigrescens'') is found in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal, is currently the only species in the genus ''Soriculus'' within the tribe ...

'' (monotypic)
†''

Asoriculus ''Asoriculus'' is an extinct genus of terrestrial shrews in the subfamily Soricinae (red-toothed shrews) and tribe Nectogalini. The best known species, ''Asoriculus gibberodon'' was widespread in Europe from the Late Miocene to the Early Pleisto ...

'' (3 species)

References

Red-toothed shrews Mammal tribes {{redtoothed-shrew-stub