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Mount Cameroon Forest Shrew

Sylvisorex moro

French: Pachyure morion / German: Kamerunberg-Waldmoschusspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de bosque del Monte Camerun

Other common names: Arrogant Shrew

Taxonomy. Crocidura morio Gray, 1862,

“Camaroon [= Cameroon] Mountains, 7000 feet [= 2134 m] above the level of the sea,” Cameroon.

Sylvisorex morio was previously included in S. isabellae, but it is recognized as a distinct species based on morphology and its distinct karyotype. Monotypic.

Distribution. Mt Cameroon, SW Cameroon.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 61-71 mm, tail 50-59 mm, ear 9-10 mm, hindfoot 12.-5-15 mm; weight 8 g. The Mount Cameroon Forest Shrew is small, with soft and dense

pelage. Dorsum is dark rufous brown to black, with silky sheen. Venteris slightly to moderately paler, depending on angle of view, with silky sheen. Ears are short and partially under fur, and feet are brown. Tail is ¢.75%; of head-body ye length and unicolored blackish brown, lacking long bristle hairs. Skull is slender when viewed dorsally, braincase is semi-hexagonal and slightly domed; I' are moderately long and hooked; and M? are wide. There are four

unicuspids. Karyotype is 2n = 38.

Habitat. Montane tropical moist forests at elevations of 1000—c.2100 m.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Endangered on The IUCN Red List. The Mount Cameroon Forest Shrew is known from only a single location (Mount Cameroon), with an extent of occurrence ofjust 483 km? and there is continuing decline in extent and quality of its forest habitat. It is threatened by habitat loss, presumably through conversion of land to agricultural uses and some logging operations. It might be common in its small distribution, but additional research is needed to confirm this.

Bibliography. Happold & Hutterer (2013b), Kennerley (2016d), Oates et al. (2004), Schlitter et al. (1999).