Soricidae Author Russell A. Mittermeier Author Don E. Wilson text 2018 2018-07-31 Lynx Edicions Barcelona Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 8 Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos 332 551 book chapter http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6870843 978-84-16728-08-4 6870843 289. Batak White-toothed Shrew Crocidura batakorum French: Crocidure des Batak / German: Batak-\WeilRzahnspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de Batak Other common names: Batak Shrew Taxonomy. Crocidura batakorum Hutterer , 2007, “The Philippines , Palawan , c. 60 km N Puerto Princesa , Tanabag River valley near village Kalabayog [ 09° 44’ N , 118° 43’ E ], 200 ma.s. 1.” Formerly, C. batakorum was misidentified as C. attenuata and stored incorrectly in collections. R. Hutterer in 2007 described it, based on a single specimen. J. A. Esselstyn and colleagues in 2009 captured additional specimens. According to their phylogenetic studies in 2009 and 2010, C. batakorum is not related to the remaining Crocidura from the Philippines or Borneo.It is sister to a clade of old endemic shrews of Sulawesi ( C. musseri , C. elongata , C. lea , C. levicula , C. rhoditis , and three undescribed Crocidura ). It is only distantly related to C. palawanensis and Palawanosorex muscorum from Palawan. A humerus from cave sediments several thousand years old, similar in size to C. cf. monticola from Borneo, probably represents C. batakorum . Monotypic. Distribution. Known only from C & S Palawan, Philippines. Descriptive notes. Head-body c.66—72 mm, tail 40-55 mm, ear 7-5-9 mm, hindfoot 11-5-14 mm; weight 4-5-7-1 g. Head-body of the type specimen is 63-5 mm, and tail is 43 mm. The Batak White-toothed Shrew is the smallest of all Philippine shrews, with shorttail (c.68% of head-body length) of which about proximal one-half is covered by long bristle hairs (51% pilosity). Dorsum is dark brown, and venter is brownish gray. Body hairs are uniformly colored from bases to tips. Tail, limbs, ears, and muzzle are paler than body. Creamy ventral surface of tail contrasts with brown dorsal surface. Dorsal part of forefeet and hindfeet are thinly haired by fine short hairs. Hindfeet are short, with some plantal granulae on ventral sides. Compared to the Batak Whitetoothed Shrew, the Palawan White-toothed Shrew ( C. palawanensis ) is slate-gray and has a slender body, slender forefeet and hindfeet with granule interdigital surfaces, and long thin tail with a few long bristle hairs. The Palawan Moss Shrew ( Palawanosorex muscorum) has a stout body, broad forefeet with long claws, and shorttail with short, dense fur, but no bristles; it has blackish pelage, and smooth interdigital surfaces. Skull of the Batak White-toothed Shrew is slender and elongated, with narrow maxillary region and moderately long and wide interorbital region. Lateral borders of interorbital (dorsal view) are almost parallel or even slightly convex. Braincase is long, narrow, and oval-shaped. There are no sagittal crests and only weak lambdoid crests. First unicuspid is large, and second and third upper unicuspids about equalin size and length. Habitat. Only known from disturbed lowland forests at elevations of 200-800 m. The Batak White-toothed Shrew was probably more common at a mid-elevation (c.800 m) site in southern Palawan than at a low elevation (¢.200 m) site in central Palawan. It has not been found with the Palawan White-toothed Shrew or the Palawan Moss Shrew, which co-occur on Mount Mantalingahan at higher elevations. Food and Feeding. No information. Breeding. No information. Activity patterns. No information. Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information. Status and Conservation. Not assessed on The IUCN Red List. Status of the Batak White-toothed Shrew is uncertain. It might not be easily trapped with standard techniques (e.g. pitfall traps or snap traps); large series from Irawan and Samarinana were taken in pitfall traps. It is possibly restricted to lowland forests, which have declined on Palawan. Bibliography. Demos, Achmadi, Handika et al. (2017), Esselstyn (2016), Esselstyn & Brown (2009), Esselstyn & Oliveros (2010), Esselstyn, Achmadi & Maharadatunkamsi (2014), Esselstyn, Maharadatunkamsi et al. (2013), Esselstyn, Timm & Brown (2009), Esselstyn, Widmann & Heaney (2004), Heaney et al. (2010), Hutterer (2007b), Hutterer et al. (2018), Reis & Garong (2001).