Nimba otter shrew
Nimba otter shrew | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Afrosoricida |
Suborder: | Tenrecomorpha |
Family: | Potamogalidae |
Genus: | Micropotamogale |
Species: | M. lamottei
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Binomial name | |
Micropotamogale lamottei Heim de Balsac, 1954
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Nimba otter shrew range |
The Nimba otter shrew (Micropotamogale lamottei) is a dwarf otter shrew and belongs to the mammal family
Description
The Nimba otter shrew is a small-bodied mammal. Weighing only about 125 g (4.4 oz) it has a body length of 15–22 cm (5.9–8.7 in) with a quarter to a third of its body size being its tail. It has been described as a "miniature sea otter with a rat tail".
Evolution and life history
The Nimba otter shrew is classified as a member of
Ecology and behavior
The Nimba otter shrew is
. It is a solitary creature and has only been seen with other shrews during mating seasons and when a mother is nursing newly born young.[7] The breeding pattern of the Nimba otter shrew is also unknown, but believed to be polygamous; as there have been no witnessed accounts of breeding in the wild and the Nimba otter shrew has not mated in captivity.[8]Conservation status
The IUCN had listed the Nimba otter shrew as endangered in 1990, but in 2018 the status was changed to vulnerable.
References
- ^ . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- PMID 27103169.
- PMID 5581385.
- ^ ISBN 0-7566-1634-4.
- PMID 11114173.
- .
- ^ Stephan, H; H. Kuhn (1954). "The Brain of Micropotamogale lamottei". Heim de Balsac. 47: 129–142.
- ^ S2CID 26714216.
- ^ "Redlist assessment information". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
- S2CID 14830223.