Sorex albibarbis

photo credit: www.mnh.si.edu

 

ID

  • Larger than most shrews
  • Soft fur that traps air, making the shrew buoyant
  • Large, partially webbed hind feet
  • Dark, almost black, upper parts in winter
  • Slightly lighter, brownish in summer
  • Underparts are grayish white

Distribution

 Credit: Smithsonian Institution

Reproduction

  • Breeding season is estimated to be between January and August
  • Gestation lasts 21 days for litters of about 6 young
  • Females produce 2-3 litters per year (Audubon)

Behavior

  • Can swim and dive very quickly and skillfully
  • Unique morphology allows them to actually run across water
  • Can adjust their metabolism to allow them to dive in cold, near freezing water
  • Use burrows of other animals or build short tunnels of their own (Whitaker)

Food Habits

  • Aquatic and non-aquatic insects and other invertebrates, fish, fish eggs, salamanders, some plant material, spores of subterranean fungus (Whitaker)
  • Earthworms, snails, and insects (Smithsonian)

Size/Life Cycle

  • Average measurements: 130-170 mm (total length), 8-18 g (total weight) (Smithsonian)

Predators

  • Water snakes, garter snakes, weasels, mink, hawks, owls, large frogs (Whitaker)

Habitat

  • Temperate forests and inland wetlands (IUCN)