Red-brown elephant shrew

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Red-brown elephant shrew
Red-brown elephant shrew (Elephantulus rufescens) (drawing from the first description by Wilhelm Peters, 1878)

Red-brown elephant shrew ( Elephantulus rufescens ) (drawing from the first description by Wilhelm Peters, 1878)

Systematics
Superordinate : Afrotheria
without rank: Afroinsectiphilia
Order : Elephant jerk (Macroscelidea)
Family : Elephant jerk (Macroscelididae)
Genre : Elephant shrews ( Elephantulus )
Type : Red-brown elephant shrew
Scientific name
Elephantulus rufescens
( Peters , 1878)

The red-brown elephant shrew ( Elephantulus rufescens ), also known as the red- brown elephant shrew or red-brown elephant shrew , is a type of elephant shrew. It is widespread in East Africa and inhabits dry, open forest and savannah landscapes . It can occur relatively frequently locally. Like all elephant shrews, the red-brown elephant shrew is characterized by an elongated, trunk-like nose and long hind and short front legs. The species is ground-living and feeds mainly on insects and only to a very small extent on plants. Individual animals claim territories and sometimes defend them aggressively. In the grazing areas there is a dense network of paths and paths that are laid out and maintained by the red-brown elephant shrew and that connect individual activity areas. The animals form lifelong, monogamous pair relationships, with females often being more dominant than males. However, common activities only take place during the breeding season. As a rule, the female gives birth to one or two young animals per litter, the exact number depends on the weight of the mother animal. The species was scientifically introduced in 1878. Several subspecies are sometimes distinguished. The entire population is considered not to be endangered.

description

Habitus

The red-brown elephant shrew is a larger representative of the elephant shrews and reaches a total length of 24.2 to 28 cm, of which the tail takes 11.6 to 14.5 cm. The head-torso length is given for individuals from southeastern Kenya with 10.2 to 19.9 cm, the tail length varies here from 11.1 to 16.3 cm. Animals from eastern Uganda have a head-trunk length of 12.5 to 14 cm and a tail length of 11.1 to 14.1 cm. As a rule, the tail reaches the length of the rest of the body and can slightly exceed it, with the maximum value being 105% in relation to the body length. The weight is 47 to 70 g, sometimes even 89 g are reached. The investigation of 174 individuals from the Meru National Park in Kenya revealed a body weight of 45 to 65 g for female animals and 35 to 55 g for male animals. Like the other representatives of the elephant shrew, the red-brown elephant shrew is characterized by a characteristically large head with a trunk-like elongated nose and short front and long rear legs. The fur dress is soft and consists of 10 mm long individual hairs, which are mostly colored dark gray, but have a leather-brown tip. The back color is variable and may depend on the nature of the subsurface ( clinical ). In southeastern Kenya, animals with a red-brown back fur dominate, in northwestern Tanzania the animals are a little more gray, while in central Tanzania and Somalia they can also appear a little more yellow. The color of the abdomen is whitish in all representatives. Unlike most other species of elephant shrews, the tail shows a uniform brown color. It is only covered by a few hairs, a conspicuous tuft of hair at the tail end, comparable to the Somali elephant shrew ( Galegeeska ) and some South African forms, does not appear. The hairy nasal mirror on the head is particularly noticeable, which is otherwise only known from the Somali elephant shrew. The ears are quite long with 22 to 39 mm and have rounded tips. A brown to light brown spot is usually formed behind the ears. The eyes are large and are framed by a whitish eye ring that expands above and forms clear eyebrows . A dark spot on the side of the eye interrupts the ring. This can continue to under the ears. The front and rear legs each end in five rays. the feet are whitish in adult animals and brownish in younger ones. In contrast are dark colored claws. The rear foot length varies between 30 and 54 mm.

Skull and dentition features

The skull is between 35.2 and 37.2 mm long, on the zygomatic arches between 19.4 and 20.8 mm wide and on the cranium 14.5 to 15.5 mm high. When viewed from above, it shows a triangular structure with an elongated, narrow rostrum only an average of 4.4 mm high and a broad cranium. The tympanic membranes are only moderately swollen. The bit is made up of a total of 40 teeth along the dental formula is: . The central incisor (I2) of the upper row of teeth is significantly smaller than the inner (I1) and outer (I3). The small canine shows a slightly molar shape. The rear teeth have moderately high crowns and four cusps are formed on each of the chewing surfaces. There is no cingulum, a bulge near the base of the tooth. The entire upper row of teeth is 17.2 to 18.1 mm long.

distribution

Distribution area (green) of the red-brown elephant shrew

The distribution area of ​​the red-brown elephant shrew extends over large parts of East Africa . The northern border is in central- eastern Ethiopia and Somalia , and since 2017 there has also been evidence of the species from the easternmost part of Ethiopia. From there it stretches across southern Sudan (today South Sudan ) to the south via Kenya and eastern Uganda to Tanzania around the Ruaha River . An isolated population could exist in western Tanzania in the Katavi National Park . The species is restricted by its distribution to the Somalia-Maasai bushland zone. The habitat includes dry woodlands and bush landscapes as well as open savannah and grass areas. The species is adapted to dry soils. With the exception of low-lying regions in Somalia and along the Tana River , the red-brown elephant shrew predominantly occurs at altitudes above 300 m. The population density has been little studied, but regionally it can be quite high. For the region around Kibwezi in southeastern Kenya a density of 2 individuals per hectare could be determined. The distribution area partially overlaps with that of the short-nosed elephant shrew ( Elephantulus brachyrhynchus ), which, however, prefers areas with a more humid subsoil. In the drier areas of Somalia, the red-brown elephant shrew is being replaced by the Somali elephant shrew.

Way of life

Territorial behavior

The red-brown elephant shrew is active at all times of the day (polycyclic). In the region around Kibwezi in southeastern Kenya, main activities were observed during the morning and evening hours from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. On the other hand, there was hardly any activity during lunchtime. The animals are ground-dwelling and fast ( cursorial ) runners, who move on four feet running or jumping. The escape behavior is very pronounced and individual individuals move away with long leaps to the next hiding place even with minor disturbances. When walking, the tail is kept mostly horizontal to the ground. The hiding places mostly consist of small recesses under bushes and shrubs and also serve as resting places; the red-brown elephant shrew does not create its own earth burrows. It is believed that the species spends about half of daylight time dormant or asleep. In the resting position, the legs lie under the body, which enables a quick escape if necessary. The eyes are seldom closed when sleeping, and individual sleep periods only last two to three minutes. Another special feature is the "face washing" with the front paws, whereby an animal wipes with both paws simultaneously over the nose, face and vibrissae . Further comfort behavior includes scratching, cleaning and extensive sand bathing in larger sand areas. However, personal hygiene only requires a maximum of two percent of daily activity.

The individual animals maintain action spaces , the size of which varies between 0.16 and 0.52 ha in southeastern Kenya, on average they reach a size of 0.34 ha. The boundaries and the extent of the territories are unstable and vary with the prevailing natural conditions as well with the appearance and disappearance of neighboring individuals. The red-brown elephant shrew is extremely territorial and defends the borders of the grazing areas against intruders, but this mostly takes place within the sexes. The fights carried out appear ritualized and begin with a drumming of the feet, which turns into a circling of the opponent, in which the limbs are strongly pressed, so that the gait appears mechanical. This is followed by a quick attack, after which both animals retreat to their own territories. A fight usually lasts a maximum of four minutes. There are various activity areas within the action spaces, which are linked by a complex system of paths. The paths and paths are laid out and cleaned by the red-brown elephant shrew. She spends up to 40% of her daily activity budget on this, which takes on average twice as much time for males as for females. The animals clear the paths by moving their front legs to remove small stones, leaves or grasses. Smaller twigs will also be bitten. The dense network of trails means that an animal can rarely be found off the beaten track.

The red-brown elephant shrew forms monogamous pairs that largely last a lifetime. This often leads to a complete overlap of the action areas of the tied animals. The couple bonds are not very pronounced, however, social interactions between the two partners rarely take place and are usually limited to nose contacts or neutral tolerance. Intense joint actions occur only during the reproductive phase. In occasional encounters, females are often dominant over the male, which can be recognized by the fact that the male tends to avoid the female rather than the other way around. Occasionally a tied male is interested in an unbound female and thus extends his range of action. However, it mostly returns to its own territory when the territory of the unbound female is occupied by a male that is also free. Overall, social interactions both with the partner and with strangers make up about 13% of the daily time budget.

Communication takes place in different ways within the species. Typical is the deposition of scent marks from glands that are formed both in the chest area and on the feet. Markings with the help of the foot glands are sometimes placed on the back of the parent animals by the young animals. The delivery of feces and urine , which often happens at the border of the territories, are also important. Above all, the excrement is piled up in piles, which consist of hundreds of globules. On the other hand, only a few vocalizations are known and are limited to a loud screeching in pain and a squeak that young animals emit when suckling. Like other elephant shrews, the red-brown elephant shrews create a foot drum that is created by rhythmic blows with the hind feet on the ground. The foot drumming is used both intra- and interspecific. The latter often happens in the presence of ground-dwelling predators. It is assumed that the drums one hand warn conspecifics or access to, the predator to drive, on the other hand to indicate to the carnivores that he was perceived, and announce that he is looking less observant prey.

nutrition

The red-brown elephant shrew mainly feeds on insects and, to a small extent, on plants. She spends around 13 to 30% of the daily available time on food intake, the proportion of females being higher than that of males. Food is often consumed in connection with the maintenance of the path. The red-brown elephant shrew rummages under vegetable waste for prey, for which it uses its nose. The food is consumed with quick movements of the extremely long tongue. The individual feeding phases are very short and last between a few seconds and five minutes. Only rarely does an animal move further than one to two meters from the path.

Studies of stomach contents from southeastern Kenya revealed an extremely large proportion of termites as the main prey. This averaged more than 50% and was slightly higher in the dry season than in the rainy season, where the food supply is more diverse. Since the number of termites turned out to be higher than they actually occur in the natural community (around 20% of insects living on the ground), the red-brown elephant shrew can be regarded as a selective insect eater. The harvest termites Odontotermes and Macrotermes were among the most commonly eaten termites . Other insects eaten included ants , such as representatives of the knot ant pheidole , as well as beetles , crickets , grasshoppers , spiders and silverfish . Occasionally, an animal has been observed to prey on a scorpion that must be killed with several bites. In the wet season, the proportion of plant-based food also increases, but does not exceed 2%. Of note are the fruits of the plant genus here Premma from the group of verbena plants , which are available during this time of year for two to three weeks. Consumption can sometimes be very noisy and has the consequence that the originally black excrement of the animals turns mauve . It is noteworthy that males eat plants more often than females, partly due to the latter's aggressive food defense. Studies from the Meru National Park in central Kenya have also produced similar results . Most of the food here was also made up of insects, reaching 93% in the rainy season and up to 99% in the dry season. Here, too, the proportion of green plant material and seeds in the food spectrum increased during the wet period.

The body temperature of the red-brown elephant shrew is 34 to 38 ° C, while the outside temperature fluctuates between 10 and 35 ° C. It is significantly more thermally unstable than other types of elephant shrews. In cooler ambient temperatures, she takes extensive sunbathing to compensate for the thermal balance, which often takes place after the onset of dawn and before dusk. The occurrence of a torpor as with some South African representatives has not been proven in the species.

Reproduction

The red-brown elephant shrew reproduces all year round, but the number of births varies with the seasons. It is highest in the rainy season, but lowest in the dry season . In females, oestrus sets in every 12 to 19 days (an average of 13 days) and lasts about twelve hours, the sexual cycle can also be significantly shorter in unbound animals. During oestrus, the female releases significantly more fragrances through the sexual organs . The mating season is the only phase of mutual activities for the couples. Mating rituals include nose-trunk contacts and dances by the male around the female. In most cases, mating takes place in easily visible places. The resulting increased risk of being caught by predators possibly led to the fact that the entire sexual act from meeting the couple to copulation to separation sometimes takes less than two minutes. In the case of individuals who do not know each other, however, the social interaction during mating is much more intense and lasts longer. The gestation period is 57 to 65 days, after which one or two young are born. The number of newborns per litter depends on the weight of the mother animal. Animals under 40 g body weight usually give birth to a young, with heavier females the number of offspring is 1.5. The number of young animals per litter is not tied to the season, but can increase with the increasing age of the female. Since the mother animals are ready to conceive again shortly after birth, the interval between two births is around 55 to 65 days, the average is around 61 to 62 days. Assuming an average litter size of 1.3 per female, this can give birth to 8.3 young animals annually.

The newborns weigh about 9 to 13 g. They are well developed and fully functional. They spend the first two days mostly motionless in a somewhat exposed shelter under a bush that does not contain a special nest. The mother animal initially stays in the vicinity. She visits the offspring at dusk to suckle, which only takes 10 to 20 seconds. There is no paternal care of the offspring, but sometimes the male drives away predators from the vicinity of the young animals' hiding place. The boys gain about 1 g in body weight every day. After a few days they leave their shelter during twilight, in the following period they gradually expand their radius of action and their action time. With around 20 days, the young animals have adapted to the rhythm of their parents and use their territory completely. Weaning takes 25 to 30 days. The parent animals then actively drive the young out of their territory, at the latest with the birth of the new offspring. They then wander around looking for their own space for action. The survival rate for the first 100 days of life is about 40%. A particularly large number of young animals die shortly after birth and after being driven away by their parents. In the wild, individual individuals reached a maximum age of at least one year and seven months. The oldest animal in human care was seven years and eleven months old.

Predators and interactions with competitors

Proven predators of the red-brown elephant shrew are the spotted sand snake and the barn owl . Most of the animals are well camouflaged by their coat color and facial markings, and their quick escape reaction also helps them to avert possible dangers. Occasionally there is food competition with the Somali warbler , the earmarked bearded bird or the black shrike , mainly in the burrows of the harvest termites, which are often aggressively defended by the red-brown elephant shrew . It is also partially believed that the presence of the percival spiny mouse in a certain area causes the elephant shrew species to be absent there.

Parasites

External parasites include various species of Rhipicephalus , a genus of ticks , and animal lice such as Neolinognathus . Furthermore, mosquitoes and fleas were observed. The single-celled Plasmodium and Eimeria , among others, have been identified as internal parasites . The former is considered to be the causative agent of malaria , the exact route of transmission is not yet known, just as no transmission from the red-brown elephant shrew to other mammals could be determined in experiments.

Systematics

Internal systematics of elephants according to Heritage et al. 2020
 Macroscelididae  
  Macroscelidinae  
  Macroscelidini  


 Galegeeska


   

 Petrodromus


   

 Petrosaltator




   

 Macroscelides



  Elephantulini  

 Elephantulus



  Rhynchocyoninae  

 Rhynchocyon



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The red-brown elephant shrew is an independent species from the genus of elephant shrews ( Elephantulus ), which consists of a total of nine species. The elephant shrews are distributed over large parts of southern and eastern Africa . They belong to the family of elephants (Macroscelididae) within the order of the same name (Macroscelidea). This group of small animals, which only occurs endemically in Africa , today consists of two subfamilies. The first is provided by the Rhynchocyoninae, which only contain the proboscis dogs ( Rhynchocyon ) and are therefore monotypical . They inhabit mostly densely forested habitats and are the largest members of the elephant shrews. The second subfamily, the Macroscelidinae, in turn, include not only the elephant shrews and the trunk rat ( Petrodromus ), the North African Elephant Shrew ( Petrosaltator ), the Somali Elephant Shrew ( Galegeeska ) and the Species of the genus Macroscelides . All representatives of this group are adapted to mostly drier and more open landscapes. As a result, they occur both in savannahs and in desert-like regions. With the help of molecular genetic analyzes, it was found that the two subfamilies separated from each other in the Lower Oligocene , about 32.8 million years ago. With the beginning of the Upper Oligocene around 28.5 million years ago, the Macroscelidinae became more fragmented.

Internal system of elephant shrews according to Smit et al. 2011
 Elephantulus  


 Elephantulus fuscus


   

 Elephantulus fuscipes



   



 Elephantulus rufescens


   

 Elephantulus brachyrhynchus



   

 Elephantulus rupestris


   

 Elephantulus intufi




   

 Elephantulus myurus


   

 Elephantulus edwardii


   

 Elephantulus pilicaudus






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The representation here neglects the positions of Petrodromus , Petrosaltator , Galegeeska and Macroscelides , all four of which are currently deeply embedded in Elephantulus , making the genus of elephant shrews paraphyletic .

Wilhelm Peters

In addition, the molecular genetic investigations also showed that the elephant shrews currently form a paraphyletic group, as Petrosaltator , Petrodromus and Macroscelides are currently still deeply embedded in the genus Elephantulus . However, the genetic investigations also advocate a close relatives group of some predominantly South and East African species. Accordingly, the short-nosed elephant shrew ( Elephantulus brachyrhynchus ) is the closest relative of the red-brown elephant shrew. A clade consisting of the dryland elephant shrew ( Elephantulus intufi ) and the western cliff elephant shrew ( Elephantulus rupestris ) acts as a sister group of the two . Also in a closer relationship is one of a common kinship group, made up of mostly South African representatives, the eastern rock elephant shrew ( Elephantulus myurus ), the Cape Elephant Shrew ( Elephantulus edwardii ) and the newly described in 2008 Karoo Cliff elephant shrew ( Elephantulus pilicaudus ). It is believed that this large community of species originated in eastern Africa. A phase of increasing aridization of the continent at the beginning of the Upper Miocene around 11.5 million years ago then led to the migration of some of these early representatives of the elephant shrews towards the south and south-west and thus to the current areas of distribution. The elephant shrews then split up further in the course of a renewed desiccation of the landscapes of southern Africa in the transition from the Upper Miocene to the Pliocene around 6 million years ago.

It is noteworthy that the close relationship between the red-brown and the short-nosed elephant shrew, as determined by molecular genetics, is not morphologically justified, since a closer relationship to the Somali elephant shrew was assumed due to the hairy nasal mirror, the similar facial markings and the only monochrome tail. Studies of the anatomy of the skull suggest a relationship to both the short-nosed and the Somali elephant shrew. In a revision of the elephant shrews in 1968, no stronger differentiation of the red-brown elephant shrew could be identified. It was not until six years later that six provisional subspecies were identified:

  • E. r. boranus Thomas , 1901; southern Ethiopia
  • E. r. dundasi Dollman , 1910; northern Kenya, Uganda, Sudan
  • E. r. peasei Thomas , 1901; eastern Ethiopia
  • E. r. pulcher Thomas , 1894; northern Tanzania
  • E. r. rufescens Peters , 1878; southeastern Kenya
  • E. r. somalicus Thomas , 1901; northern Somalia

The subspecies are mostly based on varying coat colors, these are usually viewed as clinical , and there are also numerous transitional forms. Only individuals from Ethiopia are on average slightly larger. Within individual populations, there are only a few anatomical differences in the form of excess teeth or additional cusps on the molar teeth. In general, the variability within the species is considered to be rather low. Fossil finds of the red-brown elephant shrew are not known.

The first scientific description of the red-brown elephant shrew was presented by Wilhelm Peters in 1878 under the species name Macroscelides rufescens . He performed it on a 25 cm long individual from Ndi in the Taita district in southeastern Kenya. The area is also considered a type region of the species. The specimen of the first description came from the German explorer Johann Maria Hildebrandt , who brought it back with numerous other finds from his trip to East Africa in the mid-1870s.

Threat and protection

There are currently no major threats to the red-brown elephant shrew population. The species is widespread and sometimes relatively common. In addition, it inhabits rather dry landscapes, which are less attractive for human settlement. However, in river areas it can be impaired by agricultural use, as can locally by grazing animals. The regionally varying population density of the red-brown elephant shrew is attributed to the influence of the dry climate and thus to natural fluctuations. The IUCN therefore lists the species as "not endangered" ( least concern ). It is represented in several protected areas.

The red-brown elephant shrew is often kept in zoos. One of the most successful breeds was in the Smithsonian National Zoological Park of Washington, DC in the 1970s and 1980s, the founding population of which resulted in numerous others in other North American institutions. The Washington group was also used in numerous scientific studies of the species' way of life and behavior, but it died in the late 1980s. There are seven keepers in Europe today, five of them are in Germany, the most important of which is in the Cologne Zoo . The group there was founded in 2008 with wild catches from Tanzania and initially consisted of three couples. Large parts of the European population are due to offspring from Cologne.

literature

  • Stephen Heritage: Macroscelididae (Sengis). In: Don E. Wilson and Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 8: Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2018, pp. 206-234 (p. 231) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  • Fred W. Koontz and Nancy J. Roeper: Elephantulus rufescens. Mammalian Species 204, 1983, pp. 1-5
  • Mike Perrin and Galen B. Rathbun: Elephantulus rufescens Rufous Sengi (Rufous Elephant-shrew). In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume I. Introductory Chapters and Afrotheria. Bloomsbury, London, 2013, pp. 273-275
  • Galen B. Rathbun: The social structure and ecology of Elephant-shrews. Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie, Beiheft 20 (Advances in Behavioral Research), 1979, pp. 1-76

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c J. O. Matson, M. Courtright and LA Lester: Nongeographic variation in the rufous elephant shrew, Elephantulus rufescens (Peters, 1878), from Kenya. Mammalia 48 (4), 1984, pp. 593-598
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Mike Perrin and Galen B. Rathbun: Elephantulus rufescens Rufous Sengi (Rufous Elephant-shrew). In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume I. Introductory Chapters and Afrotheria. Bloomsbury, London, 2013, pp. 273-275
  3. ^ A b Erik Thorn and Julian Kerbis Peterhans (with the participation of Jonathan Baranga, Michael Huhndorf, Rainer Hutterer and Robert Kityo): Small mammals of Uganda. Bats, shrews, hedgehog, golden-moles, otter-tenrec, elephant-shrews, and hares. Bonn Zoological Monographs 55, 2009, pp. 1–164 (pp. 102–106)
  4. ↑ a b c B. R. Neal: Reproductive ecology of the Rufous elephant-shrew, Elephantulus rufescens (Macroscelididae), in Kenya. Zeitschrift für Mammaliankunde 47, 1982, pp. 65-71
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Fred W. Koontz and Nancy J. Roeper: Elephantulus rufescens. Mammalian Species 204, 1983, pp. 1-5
  6. ↑ a b c d e f G. B. Corbet and J. Hanks: A revision of the elephant-shrews, Family Macroscelididae. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Zoology 16, 1968, pp. 47-111
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Stephen Heritage: Macroscelididae (Sengis). In: Don E. Wilson and Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 8: Insectivores, Sloths and Colugos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2018, pp. 206-234 (p. 231) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  8. ^ Håkan Pohlstrand and Ludwig Siege: Filling a gap in the distribution of Sengis in Ethiopia. Afrotherian Conservation 13, 2017, pp. 43–46
  9. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Galen B. Rathbun: The social structure and ecology of Elephant-shrews. Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie Beiheft 20 (Advances in Behavioral Research), 1979, pp. 1-76
  10. ↑ Fred W. Koontz, Judy Wellington and Paul J. Weldon: The sternal gland of the Rufous elephant-shrew, Elephantulus rufescensis (Macroscelidea, Mammalia). Anatomy, maturation, and secfretion composition. In: Robert E. Johnston, Dietland Müller-Schwarze and Peter W. Sorenson (Eds.): Advances in Chemical Signals in Vertebrates. New York, 1999, pp. 163-171
  11. ^ Galen B. Rathbun and Kent Redford: Pedal Scent-Marking in the Rufous Elephant-Shrew, Elephantulus rufescens. Journal of Mammalogy 62 (3), 1981, pp. 635-637
  12. ↑ AS Faurie, ER and MR Dempster Perrin: Footdrumming patterns of southern African elephant-shrews. Mammalia 60 (4), 1996, pp. 567-576
  13. ^ BR Neal: Seasonal feeding habitats of small mammals in Kenya. Zeitschrift für Mammalskunde 49, 1982, pp. 226-234
  14. ^ Mike Perrin: Comparative aspects of the metabolism and thermal biology of elephant-shrews (Macroscelidea). Mammal Review 25, 1995, pp. 61-78
  15. ^ A b Susan Lumpkin, Fred W. Koontz and Jo Gayle Howard: The oestrous cycle of the rufous elephant-shrew, Elephantulus rufescens. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 66, 1982, pp. 671-673
  16. ^ Susan Lumpkin and Fred W. Koontz: Social and Sexual Behavior of the Rufous Elephant-Shrew (Elephantulus rufescens) in Captivity. Journal of Mammalogy 67 (1), 1986, pp. 112-119
  17. ^ Gea Olbricht: Longevity and fecundity in sengis (Macroscelidea). Afrotherian Conservation 5, 2007, pp. 3-5
  18. ↑ LJ Fourie, JS du Toit, DJ Kok and IG Horak: Arthropod parasites of elephant-shrews, with particular reference of ticks. Mammal Review 25, 1995, pp. 31-37
  19. ↑ Harry Hoogstraal, Clay G. Huff and Deaner K. Lawless: A malarial parasite of the African elephant-shrew Elephantulus rufescens dundasi Dollman. Journal of the National Malaria Society 9 (4), 1950, pp. 293-306
  20. ↑ Modrý, David, Jirků, Miloslav and Hůrková, Lada: A new coccidian parasite (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from the rufous elephant shrew, Elephantulus rufescens, from Kenya. African Zoology 40 (2), 2005, pp. 327-329
  21. ↑ a b Steven Heritage, Houssein Rayaleh, Djama G. Awaleh and Galen B. Rathbun: New records of a lost species and a geographic range expansion for sengis in the Horn of Africa. PeerJ 8, 2020, p. E9652, doi: 10.7717 / peerj.9652
  22. ↑ a b c Hanneline Adri Smit, Bettine Jansen van Vuuren, PCM O'Brien, M. Ferguson-Smith, F. Yang and TJ Robinson: Phylogenetic relationships of elephant-shrews (Afrotheria, Macroscelididae). Journal of Zoology 284, 2011, pp. 133-143
  23. ^ Mike Perrin and Galen B. Rathbun: Order Macroscelidea - Sengis (Elephant-shrews). In: Jonathan Kingdon, David Happold, Michael Hoffmann, Thomas Butynski, Meredith Happold and Jan Kalina (eds.): Mammals of Africa Volume I. Introductory Chapters and Afrotheria. Bloomsbury, London, 2013, pp. 258-260
  24. ↑ Fabiana Panchetti, Massimiliano Scalici, Giuseppe Maria Carpaneto and Giancarlo Gibertini: Shape and size variations in the cranium of elephant-shrews: a morphometric contribution to a phylogenetic debate. Zoomorphology 127, 2008, pp. 69-82
  25. ↑ Massimiliano Scalici and Fabiana Panchetti: Morphological cranial diversity contributes to phylogeny in soft-furred sengis (Afrotheria, Macroscelidea). Zoology 114, 2011, pp. 85-94
  26. ↑ Wilhelm Peters: About the mammals and amphibians collected by Mr. JM Hildebrandt during his last East African trip. Monthly reports of the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences, 1878, pp. 194–209 ( [1] )
  27. ↑ C. FitzGibbon, M. Perrin and C. Stuart: Elephantulus rufescens. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. ( [2] ); last accessed on April 2, 2015
  28. ^ Galen B. Rathbun and Laurie Bingaman Lackey: A brief graphical history of sengis in captivity. Afrotherian Conservation 5, 2007, pp. 7-8
  29. ^ Gea Olbricht and Alexander Sliwa: Rufous sengis in Cologne Zoo. Afrotherian Conservation 8, 2011, pp. 21-22
  30. ↑ Zoo animal list ( [3] ), last accessed on June 15, 2015
  31. ↑ Gea Olbricht and Alexander Sliwa: Elephant shrews - the little relatives of elephants? Journal of the Cologne Zoo 53 (3), 2010, pp. 135–147

Web links

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