| Scientific Name | Specimen Records |
|
|||
| Sorex longirostris Bachman | ATBI Database | ||||
| Common Name | |||||
| Southeastern Shrew | |||||
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | |
| Animalia | Chordata | Mammalia | Insectivora | Soricidae | |
| Animals | Vertebrates | Mammals | Insectivores | Shrews | |
Southeastern shrews are active both day and night, spending most of their time in the underground burrows of other animals, and rooting beneath the leaf litter on the forest floor. They inhabit the southeastern United States from central Florida, Louisiana, and Arkansas north to Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and southern Maryland. Only three southeastern shrews have been recorded within the boundaries of the park - the last near park headquarters in 1950.
SPECIES DESCRIPTION
- Adult Total Length: 72-108 mm (3-4¼ in.)
- Tail: 25-40 mm (1-1¾ in.)
- Hind Foot: 9-13 mm (⅜-½ in.)
- Weight: 3-6 g (1/10-1/5 oz.)
- Physical Characteristics: The southeastern shrew
is reddish-brown above and grayish below. The long tail is indistinctly bicolored.
The southeastern shrew is slightly smaller and more reddish than the masked
shrew. Shrews possess long tapering snouts, and tiny eyes and ears. Hearing
and smelling are acute. The tips of the incisor teeth are dark chestnut in
color. Shrews have five toes on each foot.
Skull Drawings:
| Skull lateral view. | Skull dorsal view. | Skull ventral view. |
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 |
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| Click illustrations to enlarge. The Mammals of Virginia, by Donald W. Linzey. Copyright 1998. All rights reserved. |
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DISTRIBUTION
North America:
 |
Southeastern United States from central Florida, Louisiana, and Arkansas north to Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and southern Maryland. |
In Park:
 Click maps to enlarge. |
Only three southeastern shrews have been recorded within the boundaries of the park. They were taken in Greenbrier (Sevier Co.) in 1934 and 1938, and near park headquarters (Sevier Co.) in 1950. However, 15 were taken along the Foothills Parkway, between Cove Creek and Maples Ranch, (Sevier Co.) at elevations ranging from 1,430 feet to 2,400 feet (Harvey, 1991). |
NATURAL HISTORY
Habitat:
This species occurs in a variety of habitats from fields to forests. Habitat in early stages of succession and disturbed habitat such as cultivated fields and abandoned fields with dense ground cover of honeysuckle, grasses, sedges, and herbs seem to be favored.
Reproduction:
One or more litters of four or five young may be born from April through September. French (1980) compiled data from a six state region and reported a mean litter size of 3.9, with a range from one to six litters. Shrew nests are about 6 to 8 inches in diameter, with a 2 to 4 inch inside diameter. Nests consisting of masses of cut leaves have been found inside rotting logs, and in cavities beneath the bark of fallen trees.
Longevity:
French (1980) noted that most southeastern shrews probably survive only one winter, and live no longer than about 14 months.
Terrestrial Ecology:
Southeastern shrews are active both day and night, spending most of their time in the underground burrows of other animals, and rooting beneath the leaf litter on the forest floor. Foods include small spiders, small moth caterpillars, small crickets, harvestmen, small beetles, beetle larvae, and centipedes (French, 1999).
The home range of shrews probably covers an area of ¼ to 1 acre.
Predators and Defense:
Predators include snakes, owls, hawks, and carnivorous mammals such as opossums, foxes, bobcats, weasels, and skunks.
Parasites:
None recorded from the park.
CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
Special Protection Status:
- Rangewide: None.
- In Park: All plants and animals are protected
within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Collection requires a permit which
is usually granted only for research or educational purposes.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Field work:
N/A
Supporting Institutions:
N/A
Text:
Dr. Donald W. Linzey, Wytheville Community College, Wytheville, VA (wclinzd@wcc.vccs.edu)
Christy Brecht, Wytheville Community College, Wytheville, VA (wcbrecc@wcc.vccs.edu)
Photographs:
Roger Barbour. All rights reserved.
Drawings:
The Mammals of Virginia, by Donald W. Linzey. Copyright 1998. All rights reserved.
Maps:
North America: The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals, edited by Don E. Wilson and Sue Ruff. Copyright 1999. All rights reserved.
In Park: Discover Life in America - All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory. 2007. The ATBI Database. http://tremont22.campus.utk.edu/ATBI_start.cfm, Discover Life in America, Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738.
Web page:
REFERENCES
French, T.W. 1980. Natural history of the Southeastern Shrew, Sorex longirostris Bachman. American Midland Naturalist 104: 13-31.
French, T.W. 1999. Southeastern shrew. Pages 29-30 In: Wilson, D.E. and S. Ruff (editors). The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Harvey, M.J. 1991. Survey for Threatened and Endangered Mammals on the Right-Of-Way of Proposed Segment 8D of the Foothills Parkway. Report to the Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
Komarek, E. V. and R. Komarek. 1938. Mammals of the Great Smoky Mountains. Bulletin of the Chicago Academy of Science 5(6): 137-162.
Linzey, D. W. 1995a. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company, Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia.
Linzey, D. W. 1995b. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park-1995 Update. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 111(1): 1-81.
Linzey, D. W. 1998. The Mammals of Virginia. The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company, Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia.
