Corsican giant shrew
| Corsican giant shrew | |
|---|---|
|
Fossil
|
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Eulipotyphla |
| Family: | Soricidae |
| Genus: | †Asoriculus |
| Species: | †A. corsicanus |
| Binomial name | |
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†Asoriculus corsicanus (Bate, 1945) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Nesiotites corsicanus Bate, 1945 |
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Nesiotites corsicanus Bate, 1945
The Corsican giant shrew (Asoriculus corsicanus) is an extinct shrew from the island of Corsica.
It is only known from fossil remains such as the ones from "Teppa di Lupino" in North Corsica. The reasons for the extinction for this poorly known species remain unknown, but competition with other shrews, as well as introduced goats might have played a role. It died out sometime between 2.5 and 6 thousand years ago.
The Corsican giant shrew was initially described by Dorothea Bate as Nesiotites corsicanus in 1945. In 1999, zoologist Jan Van der Made from the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Spain assigned it to the genus Asoriculus.
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