Elephantulus fuscus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	MACROSCELIDEA	MACROSCELIDIDAE

Scientific Name:

Elephantulus fuscus

Species Authority:

(Peters, 1852)

Common Name/s:

English

–

Dusky Elephant Shrew, Dusky Sengi

Taxonomic Notes:

In the past the single family was included in the order Insectivora, but now the family is in the monophyletic order Macroscelidea and the newly created super-cohort Afrotheria. Currently, there are 17 living species recognized in four genera. The soft-furred sengis or elephant-shrews include three genera: Macroscelides and Petrodromus are each monospecific, while Elephantulus contains 11 species. The four species of giant sengis belong to the genus Rhynchocyon. The common name "sengi" is being used in place of elephant-shrew by many biologists to try and disassociate the Macroscelidea from the true shrews (family Soricidae) in the order Soricomorpha. See the Afrotheria Specialist Group web site for additional information.

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Data Deficient ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2008

Assessor/s:

Stuart, C., Perrin, M. & FitzGibbon, C. (IUCN SSC Afrotheria Specialist Group)

Reviewer/s:

Rathbun, G. (Afrotheria Red List Authority) & Hoffmann, M. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Justification:
Although this species probably should be listed as Least Concern, because of its relatively restricted distribution and the lack of specific information on the conditions of its habitats and abundance, it is here classified as Data Deficient.

History:

2006	–	Data Deficient (IUCN 2006)
1996	–	Lower Risk/least concern

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	Relatively restricted distribution in southern Zambia and Malawi, and south-western Mozambique (Corbet and Hanks 1968; Corbet 1971; Skinner and Chimimba 2005).
Countries:	Native: Malawi; Mozambique; Zambia
Range Map:	(click map to view full version)

Population [top]

Population:	There is no information on the population status of this species.
Population Trend:	Unknown

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	Savannah grassland with scattered trees and bushes (Skinner and Chimimba 2005).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	The major threats to this species are not known.

Major Threat(s):

The major threats to this species are not known.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	The species occurs in protected areas.

Conservation Actions:

The species occurs in protected areas.

Citation:	Stuart, C., Perrin, M. & FitzGibbon, C. 2008. Elephantulus fuscus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 February 2012.
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