Northern Short-Tailed Shrew
Table of Contents
Common Name: Northern Short-Tailed Shrew
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom: Animalia |
| Phylum: Chordata |
| Class: Mammalia |
| Order: Euilpotyphia |
| Family: Soricidae |
| Genus: Blarina |
| Species: Blarina brevcauda |
Conservation Status
Identifying Features
Northern short-tailed shrews are 3-4" long and dark grey in color. Their tails are hairless. Their burrows have 1" wide openings and they leave behind tracks 1/4" wide with a dragging tail and 5 toes.
Habitat & Range
These shrews are found throughout forested areas of eastern Canada and United States as well as in marshes and fields.
Behavior
Northern short-tailed shrews spend their time creating and roaming underground tunnels. They use leaves and other organic matter to build nests within the tunnels.
Life Cycle
Young shrews are born and reach maturity after 30 days old. They can live up to 3 years old, however most live only a year and a half in the wild.
Featured image by Gilles Gonthier
Related
Canis latrans
Coyote
Castor canadensis
North American Beaver
Condylura cristata
Starnose Mole