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The northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda) is the largest shrew in the genus Blarina, [3] and occurs in the northeastern region of North America. [4] It is a semifossorial, highly active, and voracious insectivore and is present in a variety of habitats like broadleaved and pine forests among shrubs and hedges as well as grassy river banks. [5]
All shrews are tiny, most no larger than a mouse. The largest species is the Asian house shrew (Suncus murinus) of tropical Asia, which is about 15 cm (6 in) long and weighs around 100 g (3 + 1 ⁄ 2 oz) [2] The Etruscan shrew (Suncus etruscus), at about 3.5 cm (1 + 3 ⁄ 8 in) and 1.8 grams (28 grains), is the smallest known living terrestrial mammal.
The American, or northern, short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda) The woodland vole (Microtus pinetorum) The snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus), typical of Canada, reaches its southernmost distribution in West Virginia.
Soricidin is a paralytic oligopeptide found in the venomous saliva of the northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda); [1] in the wild, shrews use it to paralyze their prey (typically insects). [2] Its name is a reference to "Soricidae", the family to which shrews belong. [3]
The northern short-tailed shrew is one of several venomous shrews. The northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda), Mediterranean water shrew (Neomys anomalus), and Eurasian water shrew (Neomys fodiens) are capable of delivering a venomous bite.
This tiny shrew is active at all hours of the day, but mostly at night. Hunting by smell and touch, the North American least shrew digs through loose soil and leaf litter for its prey along the surface of the ground. The behavior of captive individuals suggests it can also tunnel through moist soil in search of food much like moles do. However ...
A much larger shrew, the northern short-tailed shrew at around 21 g (0.74 oz), was the leading prey in Glenwood, Minnesota at 36% of 81 prey items. [110] This prey species also is taken quite regularly in several other parts of the range, as well as a closely-related species. [151]
Notiosorex shrews have a fossil history that extends to the Miocene (i.e., mid-Hemphillian). The geographic distribution of the genus has always been in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.