Dusky or Montane Shrew - Sorex monticolus
Dusky Shrew - Sorex obscurus - Eyeing large grub
Global Rank:
G5
State Rank:
S5
Agency Status
USFWS:
none
USFS:
none
BLM:
none
CFWCS Tier:
3
General Description
Pacific coast: pelage gray brown; median tine on anteriomedial edge of I1 usually large and robust; tail indistinctly bicolored; 5 or 6 pairs of friction pads on second to fourth digits of hind feet; level of pigmentation above level of median tine on I1; body size small to medium; U5 triangular, body of U1s not touching, P4 overlapping U5; zygomatic process of maxillary pointed (Carraway 1990).
Diagnostic Characteristics
See carraway (1995) for a key to western north american soricids based primarily on dentaries.
Distribution
Montana Range
Migration
Non-migratory.
Habitat
In western Montana, high altitude spruce-fir forest, alpine tundra. Also as low as 3000 ft. in mid-altitude forests. Occurs along streams and rivers east of Continental Divide and in isolated mountain ranges in central Montana. (Hennings and Hoffmann 1977).
Food Habits
Similar to other long-tailed shrews: eats mostly invertebrates (van Zyll de Jong 1983).
Ecology
Non-breeders territorial. Breeders apparently not territorial (van Zyll de Jong 1983).
Reproductive Characteristics
First-year animals may not be reproductively active (van Zyll de Jong 1983).
Citations & Sources