The Kalinga shrew mouse (''Soricomys kalinga'') is a

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Soricomys ''Soricomys'', the shrew-mice, are a genus of rodents in the family (biology), family Muridae. They are carnivores that feed on invertebrates much like shrews do. An apparently smaller relatives of the true shrew-rats ''Chrotomys'' and ''Rhynchom ...

'' found in the northern province of

Kalinga Kalinga may refer to: Geography, linguistics and/or ethnology * Kalinga (historical region), a historical region of India ** Kalinga (Mahabharata), an apocryphal kingdom mentioned in classical Indian literature ** Kalinga script, an ancient writ ...

, island of

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

, in the northern

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Balete, Rickart & Heaney (2006), p. 489.

Distribution and habitat

''S. kalinga'' was first found in Magdallao on March 30, 2000, at elevation. Until April 4, there were four males and two females caught. From 19 and 25 March 2001, another four males and two females were added on the site- Am licao, at altitude. Between 22 and 25 February 2003, two males and three females gathered on

Mount Bali-it Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

at altitude, and between February 27 and March 2, 2003, four males and one female were found on altitude. All of these sites are located in the

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...

s (municipalities) of Balbalasang and

Balbalan Balbalan, officially the Municipality of Balbalan is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Kalinga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 12,914 people. History ote: The historical note is taken from an articl ...

on 17° 25 – 28' N and 121° 4' – 122° 0' E. Habitats where it was found include montane forest and mossy forest, both primary forests and secondary growth. ''S. kalinga'' is the representative of its genus, ''

'', in the northern part of the Cordillera Central of

, and is found throughout the region. This genus also occurs in the

Sierra Madre Sierra Madre (Spanish, 'mother mountain range') may refer to: Places and mountains Mexico *Sierra Madre Occidental, a mountain range in northwestern Mexico and southern Arizona *Sierra Madre Oriental, a mountain range in northeastern Mexico *S ...

('' A. musseri'') and

Mount Isarog Mount Isarog is an active stratovolcano located in the province of Camarines Sur, Philippines, on the island of Luzon. The mountain has active fumaroles and hot springs. It has an elevation of above mean sea level. The broad isthmus between Lago ...

('' A. luzonensis''). In other mountainous areas of Luzon, including the southern part of the Cordillera Central, the genus is unknown to date. The species is active during daylight hours. Its diet consists primarily of invertebrate animals, including

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 and insects. Balete, Rickart & Heaney (2006)

Description

Like all ''Soricomys'', ''S. kalinga'' is a small ground-dwelling, pointed

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 ...

rat with small ears and slender feet. The tail length is slightly smaller than the head-body length. The fur is as thick as the other two types, but shorter. The top side of the body is orange-brown and continues gradually into the lighter underside. The hairs on the top of the body are tricolor: three quarters are dark gray, then there comes a black piece, and the point is orange. On the underside of the body, the hair is shorter and all areas are paler. The small ears are round and black. The naked skin of the lips and the nose are dark gray. The light gray

whiskers Vibrissae (; singular: vibrissa; ), more generally called Whiskers, are a type of stiff, functional hair used by mammals to touch, sense their environment. These hairs are finely specialised for this purpose, whereas other types of hair are c ...

are quite short, though they are longer than the other species. The front feet are dark gray and black and nude from the top and the lower side. On the underside of the feet are five cusps. The dark fingers have long narrow claws following a short nail on the thumb. The top of hind feet are brownish gray and covered with sparse short hairs, with darker fingers. The relatively long tail is completely black.

References

;Bibliography * * *

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from1=Q28154731, from2=Q25773 Rodents of the Philippines Mammals described in 2006 Soricomys