WEST VIRGINIA MAMMALS — KELLOGG 447 



like little muskrats and then hiding under the banks. When swim- 

 ming submerged in the water they resembled little silver streaks. 

 Galford reported that he had seen them most frequently on the head 

 waters of Wilhams River, 5 miles east of Black Mountain, 



CRYPTOTIS PARVA (Say) 



Small Short-tailed Shrew 



This little short-tailed shrew seems to prefer dry fields overgrown 

 with grass and weeds, though there are records of its occurrence in 

 damp meadows and woods. A pair of these small shrews was col- 

 lected in Greenbrier County by Thaddeus Surber during October 1897. 

 Although thus far taken only in the southeastern corner of the State, 

 it is quite likely that the animal will be found in some of the western 

 counties drained by the Ohio River. 

 Greenbrier County: White Sulphur Springs, 2. 



BLARINA BREVICAUDA TALPOIDES (Gapper) 



Short-tailed Shrew 



Short-tailed shrews seem to be the most abundant insectivores in 

 West Virginia. During April, in the western part of the State, they 

 were readily trapped in underground runways. In some locations it 

 frequently happened that it was necessary to kill off these shrews 

 before undamaged specimens of other small mammals could be trapped. 

 In the mountainous section of eastern West Virginia they were rather 

 plentiful during 1936 and were trapped in wet bogs, along streams, 

 near rotten logs and stumps, in meadows, and even in slide rock on 

 steep hill slopes. Curiously enough Blarinas were caught at Odd in 

 large Schuyler traps that had been nailed to the trunks of oak trees 

 about 5 to 6 feet above the ground. These traps were set for flying 

 squirrels and were baited \vith bird bodies. In the Cranberry Glades, 

 Blarinas were caught likewise in traps nailed to the trunks of beech 

 trees. 



Pending a new revision of the genus, not much can be done in the 

 way of distinguishing geographic races of Blarina in the Eastern 

 United States. Those taken in eastern West Virginia average larger 

 than the western series. From the eastern and southern parts of 

 the State, the average measurements of 25 males are as follows: 

 Total length, 121 (110-133); tail, 26.1 (22-33); hind foot, 14.9 (13.5- 

 16). For 57 females from the same area the average measurements 

 are: Total length, 115.6 (101-130); tail, 24.2 (16-34); hind foot, 14.9 

 (13-16). For a series of six males from the western part of the State 

 the average measurements are: Total length, 111.3 (103-119); tail, 

 22 (18-24); liind foot, 14.1 (13.5-15). The average measurements of 

 10 females from the same area are as follows: Total length, 109.3 

 (94-118); tail, 22.8 (20-27); hind foot, 13.6 (13-14). 



