Madagascar's Tenrecs
Tenrecs are currently included in the Insectivora order (Lipotyphla) although new evidence suggests they should be placed within a group of African mammals, the Afrotheria : Afrosiricidae, which includes aardvarks, elephants, hyraxes, sea cows, elephant shrews, and golden moles (Walker’s Mammals of the World).
The family Tenrecidae (Afrotheria: Afrosoricida) is divided in 4 subfamilies :
- Potamogalinae : Otter shrews
- Tenrecinae : Spiny tenrecs
- Geolinae : Long earred tenrecs
- Oryzonictinae : Furred tenrecs
39 species and candidate species of tenrec divided between 3 subfamilies have been inventoried from Madagascar:
- Tenrecinae
- Geogalinae
- and Oryzorictinae
Above the 39 species endemic to Madagascar, two species of true shrews of the family Soricidae were introduced on Madagascar:
- Suncus murinus
- and Suncus etruscus.
According of the IUCN Red List of Species (2015) : Six species (06) were found to be threatened:
- 02 Endangered
- 04 Vulnerable
List and classifications of the Tenrecs of Madagascar
| N | Order | Family | Species | Common name | Distribution - Habitat | Red List | Synonyms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Echinops telfairi* | Lesser hedgehog tenrec | Dry forests and open areas of Central W, S | LC | |
| 2 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Hemicentetes semispinosus* | Lowland streaked tenrec | Humid forests and open areas of Central Highlands | LC | |
| 3 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Hemicentetes nigriceps* | Highland streaked tenrec | Humid forests and open areas of E, far N | LC | |
| 4 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Setifer setosus* | Greater hedgehog tenrec | Widespread in forests and open areas | LC | |
| 5 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Setifer sp nov.A | Known only from Ankarana, Analamena and Montagne des Français | NA | ||
| 6 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) | Tenrec ecaudatus* | Common tenrec | Widespread in forests and open areas | LC | |
| 7 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Geogalinae) | Geogale aurita* | Large eared tenrec | Dry forests of Central W, S | LC | |
| 8 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Geogalinae) | Geogale sp nov.A | Dry forests of Central W and futher N | NA | ||
| 9 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale sp. nov.A | Known only from Itremo | NA | ||
| 10 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale sp. nov.B | Known only from Marojejy | NA | Microgale cowani | |
| 11 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale sp. nov.C | Known only from Marojejy | NA | Microgale gracilis | |
| 12 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale brevicaudata* | Short-tailed shrew tenrec | Widespread in dry forests of the W and humid forests of the N | LC | Microgale breviceps |
| 13 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale cowani* | Cowan's shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | Microgale crassipes |
| 14 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale drouhardi* | Striped shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | Microgale melanorrhachis |
| 15 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale dryas* | Tree shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E | VU | |
| 16 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale fotsifotsy* | Pale-footed shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 17 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale gracilis* | Gracile shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E | LC | Leptogale gracilis |
| 18 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale grandidieri* | Grandidier's shrew tenrec | Dry forests of Central W | NA | |
| 19 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale gymnorhyncha* | Naked-nosed shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 20 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale jenkinsae* | Jenkins' shrew tenrec | Dry forests of the SW | EN | |
| 21 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale jobihely* | Northern shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | EN | |
| 22 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale longicaudata* | Lesser Long-tailed shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 23 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale majori* | Major's Long-tailed shrew tenrec | Widespread in humid forests | LC | |
| 24 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale mergulus* | Web-footed tenrec | Humid forests of the E | VU | Limngale mergulus |
| 25 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale monticola* | Mountain shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the NE and N | VU | |
| 26 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale nasoloi* | Nasolo's shrew tenrec | Dry forests of Central W, S | VU | |
| 27 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale parvula* | Pygmy shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 28 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale principula* | Greater long-tailed shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | NA | Microgale decaryi/sorella |
| 29 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale prolixacaudata* | Lesser Long-tailed Shrew Tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | Microgale longicaudata |
| 30 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale pusilla* | Lesser shrew tenrec | Humid forests and marsh areas of the E | LC | Microgale pulla |
| 31 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale soricoides* | Shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 32 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale taiva* | Taiva shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 33 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Microgale thomasi* | Thomas's shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | |
| 34 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Nesogale dobsoni* | Dobson's shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | Microgale dobsoni |
| 35 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Nesogale talazaci* | Talazac's shrew tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | LC | Microgale talazaci |
| 36 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Oryzorictes hova* | Hova Mole tenrec | Humid forests of the Central E | LC | Oryzorictes talpoides |
| 37 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Oryzorictes sp. nov.A | Humid forests of the far N | NA | Oryzorictes hova | |
| 38 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Oryzorictes sp. nov.B | Humid forests of the Central and S | NA | Oryzorictes hova | |
| 39 | Afrosoricida | Tenrecidae (Oryzorictinae) | Oryzorictes tetradactylus* | Four-toed tenrec | Humid forests of the E and far N | DD | Oryzorictes niger |
| 1 | Soricomorpha | Soricidae | Suncus murinus** | Asian Musk Shrew | Madagascar | LC | |
| 2 | Soricomorpha | Soricidae | Suncus etruscus madagascariensis** | Pygmy (Madagascar) Musk Shrew | Madagascar | LC |
IUCN Red List:
CR: Critically Endengered (The species is facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild)
EN: Endangered (The species is facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild)
VU: Vulnerable (The species is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild)
NT: Near Threatened (The species does not currently qualify as being at high risk of extinction but it is likely to do so in the future)
LC: Least Concern (The species is not currently at risk of extinction in the wild)
DD: Data Deficient (There is inadequate information to assess the risk of extinction for this species)
NE: Not yet Evaluated
Distribution
* : Endemic species
**: Introduced species