American Recent Eulipotyphla: Nesophontids, Solenodons, Moles, and Shrews in the New World

Abstract

Woodman, Neal. American Recent Eulipotyphla: Nesophontids, Solenodons, Moles, and Shrews in the New World. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, number 650, vi + 107 pages, 27 figures, 1 table, 4 appendixes, 2 indexes, 2018.-The mammalian taxonomic order Eulipotyphla comprises the living families Erinaceidae (gymnures, hedgehogs, and moonrats), Solenodontidae (solenodons), Soricidae (shrews), and Talpidae (desmans and moles), as well as the recently extinct Nesophontidae (nesophontids). Morphological and molecular studies continue to alter our view of relationships within and among these families, and this research has added considerably to our understanding of the diversity, distributions, and relationships of many of the New World (i.e., North and South America and associated islands) species that comprise them. Currently, there are more than 450 recognized living species worldwide, making the Eulipotyphla the third most speciose order of mammals. In this work, I attempt to summarize the taxonomic results of recent studies, provide a guide to the most appropriate current applications of New World taxonomic names and their synonyms, and indicate current understanding of their distributions. The eulipotyphlans of this region currently include 111 recognized species of shrews, seven species of moles, and both living species of solenodons. Cover images, from left to right: Solenodon cubanus (Figure 7, top), Neurotrichus gibbsii (Figure 12), Sorex brevicaudatus (detail from Figure 17).

A new distribution record and a previously undocumented color pattern of the Hispaniolan Yellow Tree Frog, Osteopilus pulchrilineatus (Hylidae), in the Dominican Republic

“…1). This is a well-known historical locality for collecting fossils, insects, and mammals (Fairchild 1980;Borroto-Paéz et al 2012;Velazco et al 2013;Woodman 2018;Núñez-Novas et al 2019); however, very few herpetological surveys have been conducted there.…”

Habitat Use of the Rocky Mountain Water Shrew in the White Mountains, Arizona

“…Traditionally, the water shrew Sorex palustris was considered to occur throughout much of the boreal zone of Alaska and Canada, with southern extensions of range in the Appalachian Mountains in the east and the Sierra Nevada, Great Basin, and Rocky Mountain ranges in the west (Hall 1981). However, based on molecular data, Hope et al (2014) demonstrated that S. palustris was actually composed of three distinct clades, with eastern populations referred to Sorex albibarbis, boreal populations referred to S. palustris, and western ''cordilleran'' populations referred to S. navigator, the Rocky Mountain water shrew (Woodman 2018). Subsequently, Nagorsen et al (2017) demonstrated the morphological distinctiveness of S. palustris and S. navigator.…”

A new species of small-eared shrew (Soricidae, Cryptotis) from El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve, Chiapas, Mexico

“…in the past decade (e.g., Woodman 2015Woodman , 2018Woodman , 2019Zeballos et al 2018), the number of species in the genus might not be well-known due to the difficulty in collecting shrews, the relatively low representation of specimens in natural history museums, and the lack of taxonomic experts (Carraway 2007;Woodman et al 2012).…”

“…Cryptotis goodwini (sensu lato) had been considered widely distributed. More recently it was shown to be composed of several independent lineages recognized as distinct species (namely C. cavatorculus, C. celaque, C. eckerlini, C. goodwini, C. lacertosus, C. magnimanus, C. mam, C. matsoni, C. mccarthyi, C. montecristo, and C. oreoryctes;Woodman 2010Woodman , 2018Woodman , 2019. In addition, C. griseoventris is part of this species group (Woodman 2018).…”

“…More recently it was shown to be composed of several independent lineages recognized as distinct species (namely C. cavatorculus, C. celaque, C. eckerlini, C. goodwini, C. lacertosus, C. magnimanus, C. mam, C. matsoni, C. mccarthyi, C. montecristo, and C. oreoryctes;Woodman 2010Woodman , 2018Woodman , 2019. In addition, C. griseoventris is part of this species group (Woodman 2018). One of the main characteristics of the C. goodwini group is its morphology adapted to more fossorial foraging than other species of the genus, which is reflected in particularly large and robust forelimbs (Woodman and Gaffney 2014).…”