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 353. Niobe’s White-toothed Shrew Crocidura niobe French: Crocidure niobé / German: Niobe-Weil3zahnspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de Niobe Other common names: Niobe's Shrew Taxonomy. Crocidura niobe Thomas, 1906 , “ Ruwenzori East , [= eastern slope of Mount Rwenzori, Uganda ], 6000’ [= 1829 m ].” Crocidura niobe seemsto besister to C. kivuana , and together they are close to the Ethiopian Endemic C. monax clade. Monotypic. Distribution. E DR Congo, SW Uganda, W Rwanda, NW Burundi, and WC Tanzania. Descriptive notes. Head-body 65-81 mm, tail 56-66 mm, ear 8-12 mm, hindfoot 13—-15 mm; weight 5-5-10 g. Niobe’s Whitetoothed Shrew is medium-sized, with short hair. Dorsal pelage is dark grayish, with slight silvery mottling (slate-gray hairs with brownish tips), and ventral pelage is slightly paler. Feet are pale brown, and claws on forefeet are slightly shorter than those of hindfeet. Tail is ¢.82% of head-body length, slender, uniformly blackish and occasionally with white tip, and nearly naked. Skull has low braincase, and muzzle is stout and conical. Unicuspids are broader than longer. There are three unicuspids. Habitat. Montane rainforest, secondary forest, mesic habitats along shallow stream and sedge marshes, and near cultivated areas at elevations of ¢.1600-2250 m. Food and Feeding. Stomach samples of Niobe’s White-toothed Shrews have contained spiders, flies, centipedes, and adult and larval beetles in Burundi. Breeding. Pregnant Niobe’s White-toothed Shrews with 1-4 embryos have been captured in March—May, August, and November. Activity patterns. Niobe’s White-toothed Shrew is nocturnal. Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information. Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Although Niobe’s White-toothed Shrews are known from a relatively small and scattered distribution, they are relatively common where they are found and face no major threats other than poor park management. Bibliography. Bober & Kerbis Peterhans (2013a), Dieterlen & Heim de Balsac (1979), Gerrie & Kennerley (2017b), Kerbis Peterhans & Austin (1996), Kerbis Peterhans et al. (2010), Stanley et al. (2015), Tuyisingize et al. (2013).