SOREX TETRAGONURUS. 37 



shorter than it; tail slightly squared in the adult, rounded 

 and somewhat contracted at the base; in the young, 

 covered with short equal hairs; toes almost naked, not 

 fringed with stiff hairs. 



Sorex tetragonurus. 



Sorex tetragonurus, Desm. Hum. Sp. 234 ; De Selys, Micromm. ■ 

 Jenyns, Ann. Nat. Hist. 1838, 1841. 



Description. — Upper parts of head and body blackish, or 

 reddish brown, varying in different individuals. Body be- 

 neath and throat whitish ash, extending high up on the sides ; 

 at the point where this colour meets that of the back, there 

 is a narrow line of reddish, thus causing the transition be- 

 tween the two to be less abrupt than in 8. leucodon, though 

 it is much more so than in S. araneus ; tail of equal length 

 throughout, slightly angular, especially when old, more than 

 half as long as the body, either clothed with very short 

 equal hairs, or naked ; dark brown above, whitish beneath, 

 generally ending with a small tuft ; snout nearly as much 

 prolonged as in S.pygmceus, velvety ; feet flesh-coloured, 

 almost naked, or with very short hairs of a whitish colour ; 

 the claws are not covered by these hairs ; cutting teeth 

 much denticulated, and deeply stained with dark brown in 

 the young ; in the adult, a good deal worn, and the colour 

 not so deep. 



Entire length, from 3 inches 3 lines to 4 inches 5^ lines ; 

 body, from 2 inches 9 lines to 3 inches ; tail, from 1 inch 

 b\ lines to 1 inch 6 lines. 



Frequents gardens and moist woods ; utters a shrill cry, 

 like a grasshopper. 



Inhabits nearly all Europe, from Sweden and Eussia 

 to Italy and Spain. Is the most common species in 

 England. 



