Cryptotis monteverdensis, Woodman & Timm, 2017

Russell A. Mittermeier & Don E. Wilson, 2018, Soricidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 8 Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 332-551 : 437

119.

Monteverde Small-eared Shrew

Cryptotis monteverdensis

French: Musaraigne de Monteverde / German: Monteverde-Kleinohrspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de orejas pequenas de Monteverde

Taxonomy. Cryptotis monteverdensis Woodman & Timm, 2017 ,

“ Costa Rica, Puntarenas Province, Monteverde, Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve , in ‘cloud forest at [the continental] divide’ (ca. 10° 18" N, 84° 47° W); the highest elevations in the 1973 reserve, including the continental divide, are at ca. 1550 m.”

Cryptotis monteverdensis is in the C. thomas: group based on morphology, but genetic data are needed to support this. It and

C. endersi are the only two species of the C. thomasi group found outside South America. Monotypic.

Distribution. Near Monteverde in the Tilaran Highlands of NW Costa Rica.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 80 mm, tail 46 mm. No specific data are available for body weight. The Monteverde Small-eared Shrew is large. The single known specimen is preserved in fluid, and exact color of pelage might have been altered from the original color. Dorsum of type specimen is dark blackish brown andslightly paler ventrally. Forefeet are somewhat enlarged and robust, with long pointed claws. Tail is very long (58% of head-body length), unicolored brownish, and covered with short hairs. Eyes are diminutive, and ears are small and barely visible under fur. Fourth unicuspid is aligned with unicuspid tooth row and is visible in lateral view of skull. Teeth are reddish, and there are four unicuspids.

Habitat. Lower montane wet forest at an elevation of 1550 m. The Monteverde Smalleared Shrew is probably restricted to highest elevations of the Tilaran Highlands.

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List. The Monteverde Smalleared Shrew is only known from a single damaged specimen collected in 1973 and probably has a very restricted distribution, although the area in which the type specimen was collected has multiple nature reserves and protected areas. Additional studies are certainly needed to fully understand distribution, ecology, taxonomy, and threats of the Monteverde Small-eared Shrew.

Bibliography. Woodman & Timm (2017).

Figures

On following pages: 90. Grizzled Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis obscurus); 91. Phillips's Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis phillipsii); 92. Eastern Cordillera Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis brachyonyx); 93. Colombian Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis colombianus); 94. Honduran Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis hondurensis); 95. Darien Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis merus); 96. Blackish Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis nigrescens); 97. Lacandona Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis lacandonensis); 98. Yucatan Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis mayensis); 99. Merriam'’s Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis merriami); 100. Berlandier’s Least Shrew (Cryptotis berlandieri); 101. Central American Least Shrew (Cryptotis orophilus); 102. North American Least Shrew (Cryptotis parvus); 103. Puebla Least Shrew (Cryptotis pueblensis); 104. Mexican Least Shrew (Cryptotis soricinus); 105. Tropical Least Shrew (Cryptotis tropicalis); 106. Popocatepetl Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis alticola); 107. Goldman's Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis goldmani); 108. Oaxacan Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis peregrinus); 109. Talamancan Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis gracilis); 110. Santa Barbara Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis cavatorculus); 111. Celaque Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis celague); 112. Dark Mexican Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis griseoventris); 113. Omoa Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis mccarthy); 114. Muscular Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis lacertosus); 115. Honduran Broad-Clawed Shrew (Cryptotis magnimana); 116. Mam Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis mam); 117. Goodwin's Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis goodwini); 118. Highland Broad-clawed Shrew (Cryptotis oreoryctes); 119. Monteverde Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis monteverdensis); 120. Enders’s Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis endersi); 121. Aroa Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis aroensis); 122. Thomas's Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis thomasi); 123. Dinira Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis dinirensis), 124. Venezuelan Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis venezuelensis), 125. Merida Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis meridensis); 126. Tama Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis tamensis); 127. Perija Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis perijensis); 128. Medellin Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis medellinius); 129. Western Colombian Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis squamipes); 130. Ecuadorean Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis equatoris); 131. Osgood's Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis osgoodi); 132. Wandering Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis montivagus); 133. Blind Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis niausa); 134. Evaristo's Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis evaristoi); 135. Peruvian Small-eared Shrew (Cryptotis peruviensis).

Distribution. Near Monteverde in the Tilaran Highlands of NW Costa Rica.