Length: Body 4 inches. Tail 1 inch.
Lifespan: The largest shrew in North America, the Northern Short-tailed Shrew is not a long-lived species, many individuals living less than one year. Since young shrews can breed at just six weeks of age, a short lifespan is probably not a significant factor in the continuation of the species.
Range: Northeast to North Central United States and Southern Canada west to Saskatchewan. Along the southern and southwestern parts of this range it overlaps with two other short-tailed
Blarina species from which it cannot be distinguished in the field.
Habitat: A wide variety of habitats including woodlands, bogs, and cultivated areas. They live for the most part underground, in old logs, and hidden in leaf litter where they will scent mark and vigorously defend their territory against other Short-tailed Shrews. It is considered to be one of the most numerous small mammals in North America.
Food: Mostly carnivorous, Short-tailed Shrews eat many kinds of invertebrates, small mammals and some plant matter including subterranean fungi. They are able to kill and eat mice that are larger than they are by using venom that is produced in their salivary glands, making them one of the few venomous mammals in the world. Because shrews have such a high metabolism they actively seek food both day and night and throughout the entire year.
Reproduction: Male and female Short-tailed Shrews come together only briefly during the breeding season which is usually from early spring through early fall. After a gestation period of three weeks the female gives birth to a litter of 3 to 10 young in a nest made of shredded leaves and grass located in a chamber at the end of an underground tunnel or in an old log. The young leave the nest at 18 to 20 days old and are weaned a few days later. The female may have as many as three litters a year. Sexual maturity is attained at 6 weeks in females and 12 weeks in males.
Northern Short-tailed Shrew
