Sorex hoyi (Baird); Pygmy Shrew

Don Linzey & Christy Brecht
Wytheville Community College
Wytheville, Virginia 24382

Species Description

Photographs

Phylogeny

Geographic distribution

Habitat

Natural History

Conservation Biology

Links to Other Sites

Acknowledgements

References

© Copyright The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals,
edited by Don E. Wilson & Sue Ruff, 1999. All rights reserved.
Sorex hoyi -- Pygmy Shrew

Last updated: 26 November, 2005

Species Description

Adult total length: 2 3/4 - 3 3/8 in. (70 - 85 mm)
Tail: 1 - 1 1/4 in. (25 - 30 mm)
Hind foot: 3/8 - 1/2 in. (9 - 12 mm)
Weight: 1/10 - 1/7 oz. (2 - 4 g)
Physical Characteristics: The pygmy shrew is the smallest mammal In North America ana among the smallest in the world by weight. Adults weigh approximately the same as a dime. The fur is grayish-brown above and grayish below. The tail is indistinctly bi-colored. Shrews possess long tapering snouts and tiny eyes and ears. Hearing and smell are acute. The tips of the incisor teeth are dark chestnut in color. Shrews have five toes on each foot.


left lateral view of skull and mandible	dorsal view of skull	ventral view of skull

Index
Photographs

Sorex hoyi

Index
Phylogeny

Taxonomic Category	Scientific Name	Common Name
Phylum	Chordata	Chordates
Class	Mammalia	Mammals
Order	Insectivora	Insectivores
Family	Soricidae	Shrews
Subfamily	Soricinae	Shrews

Index
Geographic distribution

The pygmy shrew ranges from the Gaspe Peninsula across Canada to Alaska and south to northeastern Washington, northwestern Montana, Iowa, southern Wisconsin, and Ohio. The range includes New England and extends southward along the Appalachian Mountain chain into northern Georgia.

Range Maps

North America	Great Smokies

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: The pygmy shrew is one of the rarest shrews in the park. It was not until 1968 that a previously unreported specimen was discovered in the collections of the University of Illinois Museum of Natural History (Hoffmeister, 1968). It had been taken on September 6, 1941 at Newfound Gap, Swain County, North Carolina. No other individuals were recorded until 1991 when six shrews were taken along the Foothills Parkway (Sevier Co.) at Cove Creek ( 1,430 feet ), King Hollow Branch ( 1,700 to 1,800 feet ), and Caney Creek ( 1,800 to 2,100 feet ) (Harvey, 1991).

Index
Habitat

Pygmy shrews range from old fields to hardwood and coniferous forests. They have been taken under decaying logs as well as in deep leaf litter.

Index
Natural History

Reproduction
Breeding probably extends from about March to September. Females probably produce more than one litter annually. Litter sizes range from 2 to 8. Shrew nests are about 6 to 8 inches in diameter with a 2 to 4 inch inside diameter. They are composed of finely shredded grasses and leaves. Young are weaned and independent at 4 weeks of age.

Longevity
Pygmy shrews probably do not live longer than 16 to 18 months.

Terrestrial Ecology
Pygmy shrews feed on small arthropods such as grasshoppers and beetles, worms, and on limited amounts of seeds and berries. Occasionally they eat carrion (Long, 1999).
The home range of shrews probably covers an area of 1/4 to 1 acre.
Predators and Defense
Predators include snakes, owls, hawks, and carnivorous mammals including opossums, foxes, bobcats, weasels, and skunks.
Parasites
None recorded from the park.

Index
Conservation Biology

Special Protection Status
- Rangewide: None.
- In Park: All plants and animals are protected within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Collection requires a permit which is usually granted only for research or educational purposes.

Index
Links to Other Sites

University of Michigan, Museum of Zoology

Index
Acknowledgements

Text

Dr. Donald W. Linzey, Wytheville Community College - wclinzd@wcc.vccs.edu
Christy Brecht, Wytheville Community College - wcbrecc@wcc.vccs.edu
Photographs
- Rob Simpson
Map development
- Richard Schulz, Great Smoky Mountains National Park - richard_schulz@nps.gov
Web page design & coding
- Denise Lim, University of Georgia, Athens
- John Pickering, University of Georgia, Athens

Index
References

Harvey, M.J. 1991. Survey for threatened and endangered mammals on the right-of- way of proposed segment 8D of the Foothills Parkway. Report to the Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
Hoffmeister, D. F. 1968. Pigmy shrew, Microsorex hoyi winnemana, in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Journal of Mammalogy 49(2): 331.
Linzey, D. W. 1995a. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company, Inc., Blacksburg, Virginia.
Linzey, D. W. 1995b. Mammals of Great Smoky Mountains National Park-1995 Update. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 111(1):1-81.
Long, C. A. 1999. Pygmy shrew. Pages 25-27. In: Wilson, D. E. and S. Ruff (editors). The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.

Last modified: 8 April, 2002