The Ussuri shrew (''Sorex mirabilis''), also known as the giant shrew,
[ is a species of ]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 differ ...
found in Northeast Asia
Northeast Asia or Northeastern Asia is a geographical subregion of Asia; its northeastern landmass and islands are bounded by the Pacific Ocean.
The term Northeast Asia was popularized during the 1930s by American historian and political scient ...
. An adult Ussuri shrew has a total length including the tail of . It is found in valleys and on the forested slopes of mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...
s in the Korean Peninsula
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
, northeastern China, and the Russian Far East
The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...
. It is rarely observed, and its ecology is largely unknown.
Description
This is the largest shrew in the genus ''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 ...
'' and grows to a head-and-body length of with a tail of . The hind foot is long and the weight is . Both the dorsal pelage and the underparts are iron grey.
Distribution and habitat
The Ussuri shrew is native to northeastern China, northeastern Korea and southeastern Russia. It inhabits both broadleaf and mixed coniferous/broadleaved forests in valleys and on hillsides, and is present on mountains in South Korea at altitudes of over . It prefers moist locations and also occurs in marshes at higher altitudes.[
]
Ecology
The Ussuri shrew is a terrestrial species and creates burrows. Although it also eats insects, other invertebrates and carrion, about 82% of its diet consists of 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. T ...
s, and because of their relatively low nutritional value, it needs to eat more than twice its bodyweight each day.[ It is presumed to nest underground but its breeding habits are little known. There is normally one litter per year and by August, the young are sometimes caught in traps. A second litter may be born when circumstances permit, and the young become sexually mature at 11 months of age.][
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Status
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 nat ...
does not have enough information on this species to rate its conservation status, and has listed it as being " data deficient". However, the Ussuri shrew has a wide range and, despite being a rarely seen and poorly known species, when more information becomes available, it may turn out to be of "least concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...
".
References
External links
Zipcode Zoo
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1761923
Sorex
Mammals of Korea
Mammals described in 1937
Mammals of China
Mammals of Russia