223.

Lesser Large-headed Shrew

Paracrocidura schoutedeni

French: Crocidure de Schouteden / German: Kleine GroRkopfspitzmaus / Spanish: Musarana de cabeza grande menor

Other common names: Schouteden's Shrew

Taxonomy. Paracrocidura schoutedeni Heim de Balsac, 1956,

“ Tshimbulu [Dibaya], Lubondaie (75 km S. Luluabourg),” Kasai, DR Congo.

Paracrocidura seems to be nested in Cro- cidura, although its exact relationship to species in this large genus is uncertain, indicating that either Paracrocidura should be included in Crocidura or they should remain separate. At least P. schoutedeni seems to be closest to a clade containing Croci-

dura goliath and C. batesi, but larger studies with more species are needed. Monotypic.

Distribution. S Cameroon, SW Central African Republic, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, and SC DR Congo; possibly found in Equatorial Guinea but it has not been recorded from the country.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 65-90 mm, tail 33-38 mm, ear 5-5-8 mm, hindfoot 10-13 mm; weight 7-10 g. The Lesser Large-headed Shrew is small to medium-sized, with dense and short pelage. Dorsum and venter are blackish brown, and ears are a similar color, small, and covered with short, fine gray hairs. Hindfeet are short. Tail is ¢.50% of head-body length, thick, covered with longer bristle hairs, and about the same color as dorsum. Incisors have laterally flattened cutting edge. Tail and possibly hindfeet are shorter than in the other two species of Paracrocidura, and skulls are shorter than in the Greater Large-headed Shrew (P. maxima). There are three unicuspids.

Habitat. [Lowland tropical moist forests at elevations of 110-375 m (in Gabon).

Food and Feeding. No information.

Breeding. Numbers of embryos are 1-2/female (average 1-7).

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. In Ngotto, Central African Republic, capture rates of Lesser Large-headed Shrews changed throughout the year, peaking in May and November.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. Although the Lesser Large-headed Shrew has a wide distribution and is considered quite common, making up large proportions of shrew communities where it is found, it might be locally threatened by habitat destruction from logging and agricultural expansion.

Bibliography. Cassola (2016x), Heim de Balsac (1956b, 1968b), Hutterer (1986d), Lasso et al. (1996), Quérouil et al. (2001), Ray & Hutterer (1996, 2013f).