Uropsilus

Taxobox
name = "Uropsilus"MSW3 Hutterer | pages = 310-311]


regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Mammalia
ordo = Soricomorpha
familia = Talpidae
subfamilia = Uropsilinae
subfamilia_authority = Dobson, 1883
genus = "Uropsilus"
genus_authority = Milne-Edwards, 1872
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = See text.

The genus "Uropsilus" is the only genus in the subfamily Uropsilinae (or shrew-like moles), which is one of three subfamilies of the mole family Talpidae, the others being the Talpinae and the Scalopinae.

While they traditionally shared the common name of shrew moles with the Japanese Shrew Mole ("Urotrichus talpoides") and the American Shrew-mole ("Neurotrichus gibbsii"), they are now more aptly termed "shrew-like moles".

The shrew-like moles encompass four recognized species in genus "Uropsilus" that are endemic to the forested, high-alpine region bordering China, Myanmar, and Vietnam. They possess a long snout, a long slender tail, external ears and small forefeet unspecialized for burrowing. They are the most ancestral (primitive) group of moles. Indeed, they are similar to shrews in size, external appearance and presumably ecological habits. Little is currently known regarding any aspect of their natural history.

The list of species is:
*Anderson's Shrew Mole ("Uropsilus andersoni")
*Gracile Shrew Mole ("Uropsilus gracilis")
*Inquisitive Shrew Mole ("Uropsilus investigator")
*Chinese Shrew Mole ("Uropsilus soricipes")

References