Scutisorex somereni
Creators: name: Mittermeier, Russell A.
name: Wilson, Don E.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Soricomorpha
Soricidae
Scutisorex
Scutisorex somereni

description: 220. Armored Hero Shrew <i>Scutisorex somereni</i> <b>French:</b> Pachyure de Someren / <b>German:</b> Panzerspitzmaus / <b>Spanish:</b> Musarana acorazada <b>Other common names:</b> Armored Shrew, Hero Shrew <b>Taxonomy.</b> Sylvisorex somereni Thomas, 1910, Kyetume, near Kampala, Uganda. Scutisorex might be most closely related to Ruwenzorisorex and Sylvisorex. Monotypic. <b>Distribution.</b> NC &amp; NE DR Congo, C &amp; SW Uganda, W Rwanda, and NW Burundi. <b>Descriptive notes.</b> Head-body 120-153 mm, tail 76-99 mm, ear 9-16 mm, hindfoot 22-27 mm; weight 42-92 g. The Armored Hero Shrew is one of two species of extremely and uniquely adapted and very large shrews, with large, arched, reinforced, and interlocking spinal columns. Pelage of the Armored Hero Shrew is woolly in texture and longer than in Thor’s Armored Shrew (S. thor). Dorsum is blackish gray, with variably brownish tinge, sometimes with interspersed white-tipped hairs, and venter is about the same color as dorsum. In most adults, fur is stained brownish and yellowish by the yellowish secretions from lateral glands. Muzzle, ears, and feet are blackish brown, and tail is darkly pigmented with short fine blackish hairs. Tail is ¢.63% of head—body length. Skull is large and robust, with very large lamboid crests projecting posteriorly past condyles, which resembles a shield on back of the skull. Low sagittal crest is present in older individuals. Vertebral column is extremely adapted to withstand extreme force, and it has been reported that a full-grown man can stand on the back of an Armored Hero Shrew without harming it at all. Vertebral column consists of seven cervical, 14 thoracic, five sacral, and 10-11 lumbar vertebrae, compared to five lumbar vertebrae in other species of shrews. Cervical vertebrae are similar to other mammalian vertebrae, but mid-thoracic to lumbar vertebrae are extremely modified, being most prevalent in mid-lumbar vertebrae. Vertebrae are thick and have developed spines known as tubercles that originate on sides of vertebrae. Spines face forward and backward and interlock with each other to fortify the spine. Relative to the size of the Armored Hero Shrew,its spine is the strongest of all vertebrate animals. They also have thicker ribs and longer intestinal tracks, although their legs are not similarly adapted for bearing large amounts of weight. Exact purpose for this extreme adaptation is uncertain, although it might use its body to leverage andlift large objects to obtain hard to reach food items; however, there is still a large amount of research to be done on these strangely adapted species. There are four unicuspids. Dental formula for the two species of Scutisorexis 13/2, C 1/0, P 2/1,M 3/3 (x2) = 30. <b>Habitat.</b> [Lowland and montane tropical moist forest at elevations of 400-2500 m. In montane areas, the Armored Hero Shrew is often associated with stream edges. It appears to be a forest-obligate and has been recorded less frequently in secondary lowland forests and montane bamboo habitats. It has not been recorded from open habitats or swamps and marshes, although when collected in Uganda, habitat was stated to be primarily swampy. <b>Food and Feeding.</b> The Armored Hero Shrew eats a variety of invertebrates, but earthworms and adult and larval insects (Diptera, Coleoptera, Heteroptera, Isoptera, Blattodea, etc.) make up the largest proportions of diets. They also eat spiders, centipedes, millipedes, and species of Acari in relatively high quantities. They eat larger prey than most species of shrew (greater than 30 mm in length), and in Masako Forest, DR Congo, they were the only species of shrew (out of nine species) that ate earthworms. They forage along the ground by waving their nose around and through leaf litter, moving good-sized pebbles, decaying wood, and bark with their incisors. Armored Hero Shrews have proportionally longer intestines than in other species of shrews, perhaps because they need more surface area to absorb more nutrients to support their greatersize. <b>Breeding.</b> Reproductive activity of the Armored Hero Shrew has been recorded in December—-August, although they might breed yearround. Pregnancy rates seem to be highest during wet season (December—April). Numbers of embryos are 1-3/female (average 1-8). <b>Activity patterns.</b> Armored Hero Shrews are terrestrial and are probably active day and night. <b>Movements, Home range and Social organization.</b> Although Armored Hero Shrews have only been captured alone, they might be more social than many other species of shrews because they are relatively mild and less aggressive. In captivity, they have been observed very conspicuously marking objects by rubbing up against them with their hindquarters, which might suggestterritoriality contrary to their mild demeanor. Scent marking seems to be important for intraspecific communication, and humans can smell their yellow secretions up to 5 m away. <b>Status and Conservation.</b> Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Armored Hero Shrew has a wide distribution and does not seem to have many major threats other than localized deforestation. <b>Bibliography.</b> Ahmed &amp; Klima (1978), Allen (1917), Cassola (2016w), Churchfield et al. (2007), Cullinane et al. (1998), Dieterlen &amp; Happold (2013), Quérouil et al. (2001), Stanley et al. (2013).
description: Published as part of <i>Russell A. Mittermeier &amp; Don E. Wilson, 2018, Soricidae, pp. 332-551 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 8 Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions</i> on pages 470-471, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6870843