Tiny shrew: habitat and interesting facts. Tiny shrew

The genus of shrews includes about 130 species, which differ from each other not only in habitat, but also in size. These are small animals whose distinctive features are a long tail and an elongated muzzle.

Body size can range from 5 to 10 cm, depending on the variety. Tail - from 3.5 to 7.5 cm. Weight - from 2.5 to 15 grams.

The entire body is covered with fine, dark-colored fur, brownish-gray in most species. The abdomen is light. The tail is covered with thick short fur.

Tops of teeth have brownish red color - thanks to this, the animal got its name. However, the older the shrew, the more its teeth wear down, and this color may gradually disappear. Dental formula shrews: incisors 3/2, canines 1/0, premolars 3/1, molars 3/3.

The ears are small, almost do not protrude above the surface of the coat. The eyes are black, but due to the predominantly underground lifestyle, vision is poor and poorly developed.

As a result, the animal searches for food using a powerful sense of smell or echolocation.

Shrews - one of the oldest branches of mammals, and their teeth have a clear division into canines, incisors, and molars.

REFERENCE! All animals of this species have a strong smell of musk, which is why many predators, having caught a shrew, refuse to eat it and throw it away.

The animal's prints are shallow, small, and usually arranged in pairs. When there is no hard crust on the snow, a clearly visible imprint of the tail remains.

Distribution and reproduction

Shrews are common in many countries. They are most often found in North America, northern Asia, Europe.

This is the most common species that can live in any conditions - forests, forest-steppes, tundra, sometimes even in the floodplains of steppe rivers and meadows. Does not settle in wetlands.

About 15 species live on the territory of Russia, which are quite difficult to distinguish from each other. The main features here are the details of the body structure and genitals.

They live everywhere, from Moscow to the Primorsky Territory and Sakhalin.

In the taiga zone, the normal number of animals is in the range of 200-600 individuals per hectare, in the tundra - 3-5 times less.

The average life expectancy of a shrew is 1-1.5 years. It begins to reproduce in the second year, immediately after the end of the winter period.

Creates nests in the form of a ball of plant stems, which is located under the stumps and roots of trees. Pregnancy lasts on average 20 days.

Young individuals leave the nest on the 20th day after birth. During the season, the shrew leaves 3 litters, and in the first there are 8-10 cubs, and in the last - only 3-4. The second litter appears after the grown individuals from the first leave the nest.

Lifestyle

Shrews active throughout the year, and they endure the winter without plunging into a long hibernation. During the day, they carry out most of their activity at dusk and at night.

Although the animal enters genus, it does not build holes on its own, but uses ready-made labyrinths of underground animals, moles, natural cracks and holes in the ground.

They can trample passages under the forest floor and in thick snow (passage diameter 2 cm).

IN winter time They practically do not rise from under the snow, but if it is impossible to dig out insect larvae from the frozen soil, they move along the surface in search of plant seeds.

REFERENCE! If there is no food, it dies within a few hours.

The shrew has a very high metabolic rate - it eats up to 150% of its body weight, 15 grams of animal food or 20 grams of fish per day.

The frequency of food intake depends on the size - the smaller the animal, the more often it needs to eat. For example, a tiny shrew must eat 78 times a day!

During winter, the volume of seeds and plant food. There are known cases of creating reserves for this time from earthworms.

Also, for a successful winter, there are innate protective processes - in the autumn there is a serious decrease in body weight and its volume, which includes all internal organs, including the brain.

In the spring, before the onset of the breeding season, the body returns to normal size.

Photo

See below: shrew photo

Distinctive features from other rodents

Shrew often confused with mice. Their main differences are small eyes, a long elongated muzzle with inconspicuous ears, and a reddish tint to the teeth.

Benefits and harms

Shrews are predominantly insectivorous animals, and therefore usually do not damage agricultural crops.

However they can V winter period sneak into houses, barns, sheds to search for food, both plant (seeds) and larvae of sleeping insects.

Some farmers consider shrews to be the cause of their appearance on lawns or beds. large quantity mink But this animal cannot dig them on its own, since its paws are not designed for digging!

At the same time, thanks to the constant search for food, the animal destroys a huge number of insect pests, including those overwintering in the litter and in top layer soil.

Her basic diet consists of worms, larvae, spiders, woodlice, including such pests as slugs, May beetles, mole crickets, leaf beetles, weevils, moth caterpillars and cutworms.

In case of severe hunger, the shrew attacks ground beetles or small mice.

IMPORTANT! If the desire to get rid of an animal on the site still exceeds the benefit it can bring, it is best to use non-fatal methods - for example, ultrasonic repellers.

Conclusion

Shrews- These are small animals from the shrew family. They are common in many parts of the world; in Russia they live almost throughout the entire territory. They do not build their own passages using ready-made underground passages of other animals.

They feed on insects and their larvae bring great benefits home and farming. The harvest can only begin in the event of a severe shortage of food.

Useful video

A voracious predator lives in the forests of Central, capable of eating three or even four times as much food. own weight! But this beast itself is not at all scary - it weighs less than 3 grams. The tiny shrew has a huge range - from the Scandinavian Peninsula to Kamchatka, Sakhalin and, from forest-tundra to forest-steppe. But throughout its entire length, the tiny shrew is rare and difficult to observe.

How does the tiny shrew survive northern winters? How does it escape from other predators? And is it necessary to save her herself? There is still very little information about the life of this species. The shrew is found mainly in forests, but it also settles along river valleys and along the outskirts of raised bogs, and in some places it gets out into the mountain tundra. The biggest threat to the smallest animal is the destruction of its habitats, drainage of swamps and cutting down of old growth forests. In some regions of Russia, the shrew is included in the local Red Data Books.

AGGRESSIVE BABIES: FIGHTING THE COLD

The tiny shrew is the smallest warm-blooded creature in the taiga. Unlike bats, many rodents and even some desert shrews, shrews do not know how to fall into torpor, lowering their body temperature. But many northern shrews for the winter reduce, “compress” the size of the skull and internal organs to reduce heat loss! The small body quickly cools down in the cold, and the animal needs to constantly feed to maintain a constant temperature. Thick, lush fur also contributes to the preservation of heat, but in the cold it does not help, and shrews hide under the snow, continuing to look for food among the fallen grass, fallen leaves, in the passages of voles, mice and moles. Just a few hours without food and the shrew will die. It is not surprising that the tiny animal eats everyone who gets in its way and whom it is able to defeat, not excluding its own relatives.

"SAW-32"

The shrew has 32 teeth, just like humans, but its teeth and jaws are designed completely differently. The incisors on the lower jaw are extended forward, resembling a pair of scalpels. On the upper jaw, on the left and right, there are five intermediate teeth of a conical shape, slightly beveled back towards the pharynx (like a gharial crocodile). fused into one, protruding forward big tooth incisors with an additional tooth. So shrews have an excellent weapon for capturing prey! The jaws of shrews only move up and down; these insectivores cannot grind food between the teeth by moving the lower jaw left and right. But the sharp cutting edges of the back teeth shred the chitinous cover of insects and spiders. The shrew is ready to forcefully close its jaws on any prey that fits between them, and then you can lift the midget predator from the ground by grabbing onto its trophy. Like all members of the genus, the tiny shrew has colored apexes of its teeth. Brown color This shade is associated with iron deposits, which make the animals' teeth more durable. However, with old age, the intermediate teeth wear down to the base, almost to the jaw. But the baby teeth of animals dissolve during embryonic development, so that they are born with a set of permanent ones.

The shape of the teeth is the main identifying feature by which outwardly similar species of shrews are distinguished from each other. And only the tiny shrew can be identified with confidence by the size of its body and skull! It is quite natural that it has almost the smallest skull among mammals - its length is 12-14.5 mm (smaller only in the pig-nosed bat - 11 mm). At the same time, the proportions of the body are amazing: half the length of the skull is the length of the dentition (about 6 mm), and the length of the skull is a third of the entire body length of the tiny shrew, from the base of the tail to the tip of the nose!

There is a common joke among zoologists: there would be no scarier predator on Earth if the shrew were the size of a cat. True, as body size increases, the need for food relative to body size decreases. Even the common shrew, which is 4-6 times heavier than a tiny one, eats not four, but twice its weight per day.

WORLD OF WHISTLES AND SMELLS

The tiny shrew's vision, like that of its relatives, is poor. Small eyes are buried in wool, and how much can you see while making your way through the thickness of half-decomposed foliage! The ears are also hidden in the fur on the sides of the head. But shrews are very sensitive to odors. Using their sense of smell, continually lifting the movable tip of their nose, these predators not only find prey, but also “read messages” left by other individuals. The sense of touch is also used to search for prey.

The tiny shrews themselves have a strong and pungent smell - this general property shrew. Because of this, larger predators rarely eat them, but sometimes they strangle them, obeying the grasping reflex, and throw them away.

SEVERE! SINGLE MOTHER

Shrews do not form pairs; they live alone; cubs from different males can be born in the same brood. During the summer, the female brings one or two litters of 4-6 naked, blind cubs. For about three weeks, the babies stay in the nest, where the female feeds them milk, then for a few more days they run after the mother in a “caravan”, when the first cub clings to the mother with its teeth, the second cub - to the first, and so on. Then the brood breaks up, the mother expels the cubs from her territory, and they go looking for free places. Passing through occupied territories, shrews behave cautiously. If the animals collide with each other, you can hear their sharp, rasping voice.

TINY SHREW IN THE FOOD CHAIN

A tiny shrew is not able to defeat a large beetle, frog or lizard. Its prey includes small (less than 0.5 cm) larvae, spiders, beetles, bedbugs, worms, slugs, ants, caterpillars, pupae and butterflies. From more large insects the animal eats away the softest parts. Although the main diet consists of animals, the tiny shrew also eats seeds coniferous trees, especially ate.

FEEDING OF THE TINY SHREW

ORDINARY DRUPE

One of the representatives of the widespread family of centipedes. Found in European forests. This rust-colored creature with 35-49 segments reaches at most 3 cm in length. The body of the drupe is flattened, and it fits into the narrowest crevices. During the day it hides in rotten wood or in the forest floor, and at night it comes to the surface to hunt insects and spiders. The drupe runs quite quickly on its 30 large legs. But the shrews still manage to catch her.

COMMON HAYMAKER

The bite of a large spider can harm a tiny shrew; much safer prey is harvestmen, of which there are more than 60 species in the European part of Russia. The common haymaker is the most widespread of them and is found everywhere throughout the summer. Young harvesters mostly stay on the surface of the ground, while adults climb on the grass. The common haymaker, like all representatives of its genus, feeds on arthropods, plants and fungi, bird droppings and animal feces. When in danger, the harvester parts with one of its long legs, which continues to “mow”, distracting the attention of the hunting predator.

BLACK GARDEN ANT

This ant is also called black lasius. It is one of the most common and widespread ant species in Europe. You've probably seen the lasius themselves and their small anthills. Not having large mandibles, unlike red wood ants, black garden ants become easy prey for shrews.

ENEMIES OF THE TINY SHREW

GRAY OWL

The owl is medium-sized and inhabits mixed and deciduous forests. It hunts mainly voles and mice, but shrews, including the tiny shrew, are also found in the pellets of owls. Owls swallow the animals whole, and after a while they regurgitate a pellet - a lump of bones and fur from the eaten animals. As a rule, relatively preserved jaws and parts of skulls can be found inside, which can be used to determine who the owl ate. Analysis of pellets is the main way to study the nutrition of owls. Sometimes zoologists manage to discover species of animals that they could not track in this territory by any other means!

The tiny shrew sleeps about 80 times a day for 10-15 minutes, the rest of the time is spent searching for food. Although the size of the victims rarely exceeds 3-5 mm in length, this animal can eat four times its own weight per day!

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF

Class: mammals.
Order: insectivores.
Family: shrews.
Genus: shrews.
Species: tiny shrew.
Latin name: Sorex minutissimus.
Size: body - 30-53 mm, tail - 17-33 mm.
Weight: 1.6-2.5 g.
Color: two-color (upper body from brown to dark gray, underside light, silver-gray; tail also two-color).
Life expectancy of a tiny shrew: up to 1.5 years (usually 14-16 months).

Our planet is inhabited by numerous animals living on land, in water, in the air and underground. Their world is rich and diverse and each of the creatures occupies its own specific niche. All of them are different from each other and differ not only in their lifestyle, but also in their incredible size. And if large creatures are always in sight, then small ones are not so easy to meet, although there are quite a lot of them.

Researchers from many countries travel around the world in search of new species of miniature creatures, but finding them is not so easy, so quite often scientists fail. But when they manage to discover a new creature hitherto unknown to anyone, their joy has no end. Behind Lately Researchers have discovered many new species of baby animals.

Microfrogs Paedophryne

The smallest land animal. Microfrogs (lat. Paedophryne) - this small frog belongs to the family of narrow-mouthed frogs, or microfrogs.

It is considered the smallest in the world, its length does not exceed 7.7 mm, but sometimes it grows up to 11.3 mm. This little one was recently discovered, it was found in Papua New Guinea. The females of these amphibians are slightly larger than the males. Thanks to its brown color, this frog is invisible neither on the ground, nor among the foliage, nor on tree trunks.

The smallest aquatic animal. Fish Paedocypris progenetica- recognized as the smallest inhabitant of water bodies. It can be found in sewage streams and peat bogs Indonesia.

The largest are females, but they are also small - 10.3 mm in length. The smallest officially recorded length of this fish is 7.9 mm. Interestingly, these crumbs belong to one of large families carp!

Chameleon Brookesia minor

The smallest lizard in the world. Chameleon Brookesia minor (lat. Brookesia minima) – inhabitant tropical forests Madagascar and the smallest lizard.

Due to its tiny size (1.2 cm) and the ability to change color (in fact, like all chameleons), it is not easy to notice in natural conditions. It was discovered in 2007 near the island of Madagascar, and this chameleon was described only in 2012.

Denis's seahorse

Marine (lat. Hippocampus denise) – another little one and a master of disguise. Lives in warm waters western Pacific Ocean at a depth of about 16-90 m.

One can only wonder how such a tiny creature, whose length does not exceed 1 cm, manages to survive among cruel world sea ​​creatures. But it turns out that it is possible to survive: it perfectly camouflages itself as gorgonians or the corals in which they live, painting its body orange or yellow.

Dwarf gecko

Dwarf gecko (lat. Sphaerodactylus ariasae) – little creature, the size of which does not exceed 1.6-1.8 cm, easily fits on the nail thumb hands. This little thing weighs nothing - 0.2 grams.

flickr/Hispanioland

It is worth noting that this gecko was discovered in 2001, but despite this it is already under threat complete disappearance. It is probably worth thanking those researchers who timely calculated its number, in view of which the dwarf gecko was immediately listed in the Red Book.

Irukandji jellyfish

Irukandji jellyfish (lat. Carukia barnesi) – unusually poisonous and very small creature, living in Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Australia. Externally, this jellyfish resembles a white translucent bell. Its dimensions are only 12x25 mm, and the tentacles are from 1 mm to 1 m long.

But it was not only its size that attracted the attention of researchers. This little thing can not only paralyze a person, but even kill him. There is no antidote yet, since this species has not yet been studied enough and, therefore, its poison too.

hummingbird bee

The smallest bird. Hummingbird-bee (lat. Mellisuga helenae) - the smallest among birds.

It was discovered in 1844 in Cuba by Juan Cristobal. Its weight is only 1.6-2 g, and its body length is 5-7 cm. It feeds, like all hummingbirds, on the nectar of flowers. Interestingly, the heart of this miniature bird beats at a frequency of 300-500 beats per minute.

Pygmy shrew

The smallest mammal. Pygmy shrew, or Etruscan shrew (lat. Suncus etruscus) - inhabitant of southern Europe, southern Asia and northern Africa.

Many scientists believe that for an animal to exist normally, it must weigh at least 2.5 g, but this little one, whose weight is only 1.5 g and whose body length is 3-4.5 cm, lives and thrives. But to do this, she has to eat all the time, and therefore she hardly sleeps. Heart rate is 1300 beats per minute.

Hog-nosed bat

Pig Nose bat, or bumblebee mouse (lat. Craseonycteris thonglongyai) - lives in western Thailand and southeastern Burma.

Its weight is only 2 g, and its body length is no more than 4 cm. According to the latest data, their number is several hundred individuals, therefore it is a vulnerable species listed in the Red Book. In flight it resembles a hummingbird.

The snake is the shortest snake found in the Caribbean.

Blair Hedges, Pennsylvania State University

This baby grows to only 100-104 mm in length, it can easily be confused with. Likes to hide under stones and also in the soil. It feeds on termites, ant eggs and other small insects. Not poisonous.

In order to survive, many creatures during evolution have to take on the most bizarre shapes and unusual sizes. The most striking proof that nature has prepared many surprises for us are the miniature animals of our planet.

The tiny shrew is a mammal of the shrew family of the order of insectivores, similar to a small mouse. The tiny animal got its name from the word “brown”, since the tops of the creature’s teeth really differ in this unusual color.

Habitat

You can meet shrews almost everywhere; often more than three species of these animals live simultaneously in one area. For example, in the Moscow region there are as many as six species of shrews: common shrew, small and medium shrew, tiny shrew, equal-toothed shrew and shrew.

Equal-toothed shrubs are found along creeks and river banks, just like the common shrew - they are great lovers of dampness. The medium and tiny shrews are among the most rare species, preferring coniferous, taiga forests. The small shrew and common shrew live in open areas - in steppes, meadows, and woodlands.

The shrew is unpretentious in terms of comfortable living conditions, but the abundance of food all year round for her it is a necessary condition. It is not possible for a small animal to travel long distances in search of food, and it is not able to survive without food for more than 3-4 hours.

Characteristic

The tiny shrew is one of the smallest insectivorous creatures in Russia and Europe. The size of an adult individual including the tail is 6-7 cm, and the weight does not exceed five grams. It would be more correct to describe the tiny shrew with the silky fur of a soft coffee color on the back, which turns into light fluff on the belly. The tail, which is slightly more than half the length of the shrew's body, is also two-colored. The paws are not covered with fur.

In summer, the color of the animal fades slightly, and in winter it becomes richer. The animal's ears are small, but hearing is very well developed, as is touch and sense of smell. The elongated head ends in a proboscis nose with bristling vibrissae (long whiskers).

Shrews do not live more than one and a half years, and about a fifth of this short life their breeding season lasts. Unlike most animals, the female's gestation period is not strictly fixed. The cubs will be born healthy in both 18 and 28 days. The average number of babies per litter is about five, but sometimes there are 8. During her life, an adult female gives birth to from 1 to two litters.

Lifestyle

The high vital activity of the tiny shrew is due to the constant search for food. At least 70 times during the day the animal’s activity stops for a short time- 10-15 minute nap. Then the bustle resumes.

To maintain normal functioning, a tiny shrew must consume an amount of food twice its body weight. In the warm season, intensive searches for food are carried out throughout the entire territory that the animal is able to cover in short dashes: in trees, in the soil. In winter, the search is carried out exclusively on the ground, and the animal navigates under the snow just as well as in open space.

Shrews willingly eat all living things that smaller in size themselves, but in the cold season they do not disdain the waste of their own kind and other large animals. During particularly hungry times, adult shrews calmly include the cubs of their fellow tribesmen in their diet.

In winter, shrews do not hibernate, but it is almost impossible to see them on the surface of the snow cover. Due to their overly bright colors, animals leave snowy areas only in situations of extreme necessity and when they are very hungry. This precaution could be called unnecessary, since the strong specific smell of the animal discourages predators from hunting, if not for owls - the only representatives of the predatory fauna who are not so whimsical.

Another interesting fact - the tiny shrew retains the most high temperature bodies compared to all mammals on the planet - from 40 0 ​​C.

Most animals of this species live in the taiga - on average 350-400 shrews per 1 hectare, but in other areas of their habitat the existence of tiny creatures is under threat. IN Murmansk region The tiny shrew is listed in the Red Book.