143.

Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew

Blarinella griselda

French: Musaraigne griselda / German: Indochina-Kurzschwanzspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarafa colicorta de Indochina

Taxonomy. Blarinella griselda Thomas, 1912,

“42 miles [= 68 km] S.E. of Tao-chou [Gansu, northwestern China]. 10,000’ [= 3048 m].”

Blarinella griselda was included in B. quad- raticauda as a subspecies. Taxonomy of B. gniselda is problematic, and there are probably undescribed species. All information is based on current taxonomy. Species boundary between B. wardi and B. gniselda is not entirely clear. Monotypic.

Distribution. C & SW China (Gansu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, Yunnan, and Guizhou) and N Vietnam.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 52-74 mm, tail 31-42 mm, hindfoot 8-5-14 mm; weight 8 g. Condylo-incisive lengths are 19-20-9 mm, and tooth rows are 7-8-8:7 mm. The Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew is similar to the Sichuan Short-tailed Shrew ( B. quadraticauda) but smaller and with relatively shorter tail. Dorsal pelage

is mousey gray, and ventral pelage is paler. Most teeth are heavily pigmented, which is most obvious on upper incisors. Skull is robust, and braincase is high. It has five upper unicuspids, and second upper unicuspid is intermediate in size between first and third. Number of upper unicuspids visible in lateral view is four in most specimens.

Habitat. Forested habitats at elevations of 1300-3300 m. The Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew has been caught in broad-leaved, conifer, and bamboo forests but never in anthropogenic habitats.

Food and Feeding. The Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew is insectivorous. In captivity, it prefers raw meat rather than mealworms.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. Most Indochinese Short-tailed Shrews were captured at night. They are semi-fossorial and good diggers. In captivity, they usually dig holes for resting.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Indochinese Short-tiled Shrew is aggressive and attacks small mammals, including conspecifics.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Indochinese Short-tailed Shrew has a wide distribution. Anthropogenic activities including deforestation could affectits distribution at lower elevations, resulting in future populations decline.

Bibliography. Bannikova et al. (2017), Chen Shunde et al. (2012), Jiang Xuelong et al. (2003).