Descriptions of East Asiatic Mammals 47 
Africa. One North American genus, Cryptotis, has reached the 
northwest corner of South America. In eastern Asia five genera 
are present : the Long-tailed Shrews, Sorex, the Southern Long- 
tailed Shrews, Soriculus, Kastaschenko's Shrews, Chodsigoa, 
the Oriental Short-tailed Shrews, Blarinella, and the Old World 
Water Shrews, Neomys. 
Red-toothed or Brown-toothed Shrews are so called because 
the tips of their teeth are coated with brownish red, sometimes 
blackish red pigment. In general, the tails are rather smooth- 
haired or at least lack the scattered, very long guard hairs to be 
seen in S uncus and Crocidura of the Crocidurinae. 
The True or Long-tailed Shrews, genus Sorex, form the 
largest genus of the red-toothed division of the Soricidae. They 
need to be distinguished carefully from the Southern Long- 
tailed Shrews and Kastschenko's Shrews, which closely resemble 
them. Certain of the tiniest of the True Shrews as well as cer- 
tain species of Suncus are called Pygmy Shrews. 
The body in Sorex is rather slender. The delicate front and 
hind feet are armed with sharp claws on the five well-developed 
digits. The snout is long, slender, and tapering. The tail may 
be as long as head and body or considerably less. There are 32 
teeth (less in some of the other genera given above). 
The Common Shrew of Europe, Sorex araneus, is by far 
the best-known species. The color of the fur may be slightly 
different in different molts. Winter pelage may not only differ 
in color but may be fully twice as long as summer pelage. The 
food of Shrews, while chiefly made up of insects, spiders, and 
other invertebrates, undoubtedly includes meat at times, because 
Shrews readily kill and eat mice larger than themselves if they 
can corner them. The habits given for the Common Shrews are 
doubtless shared in large measure by the many other species, 
of which we know much less. 
Mating, in this species, takes place from March onward, and 
gestation is said to last about 4 weeks. The nests, placed in cavi- 
