Rediscovery of an ‘extinct’ endemic mammal Sonnerat’s Shrew (Diplomesodon sonnerati Cheke, 2012) in Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India.

Iranian Journal of Animal Biosystematics

مقاله 6، دوره 21، شماره 2 - شماره پیاپی 39، اسفند 2025، صفحه 171-174   

نوع مقاله: Short Communications

شناسه دیجیتال (DOI): 10.22067/ijab.2025.90911.1089

نویسندگان

Moinudheen Nizamudheen¹؛ Samson Arockianathan^{* 2}؛ Mohammed Sirajudeen Shahir³؛ Abinesh Anbazhagan⁴؛ Brawin Kumar Rajaboopathi⁵

¹Independent Researcher in Nilgiri, Tamil Nadu, India

²Bombay Natural History Society, Vulture Programme, Vulture Conservation Breeding Centre, Bhopal- 462 044, Madhya Pradesh, India

³Department of Zoology & Wildlife Biology, Government Arts College, Udhagamandalam 643002, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India

⁴Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Pondicherry University 605001, India

⁵Hedgehog Conservation Alliance, 4-58/2, South Street, Sasthan Kovil Villai, Swamithoppu, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu 629704, India

چکیده

The family Soricidae comprises 385 species in 26 genera, including the monotypic genus Diplomesodon, previously thought to contain only the Central Asian Piebald Shrew D. pulchellum. The enigmatic Sonnerat’s Shrew D. sonnerati, described over 200 years ago from Pondicherry, India, was long considered possibly extinct due to the absence of confirmed specimens. On 1 October 2022, we photographed a dead shrew in Udhagamandalam (Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu) exhibiting distinctive grey pelage with a transverse white band and a stout tail, consistent with historical descriptions of D. sonnerati. The specimen measured 143 mm (head–body) and 26 mm (tail). Despite extensive live-trapping (15 traps, October–December, winter season), no additional individuals were detected. The Nilgiri record lies ~350 km from the type locality, indicating a notable biogeographic disjunction that may represent either a relict population or part of a wider, under-documented range. Targeted surveys in intervening habitats, coupled with genetic analyses, are urgently needed to assess distribution, population connectivity, and taxonomic validity, and to inform conservation strategies for this potentially rare and evolutionarily distinct shrew.





The family Soricidae comprises 385 species in 26 genera, including the monotypic genus Diplomesodon, previously thought to contain only the Central Asian Piebald Shrew D. pulchellum. The enigmatic Sonnerat’s Shrew D. sonnerati, described over 200 years ago from Pondicherry, India, was long considered possibly extinct due to the absence of confirmed specimens. On 1 October 2022, we photographed a dead shrew in Udhagamandalam (Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu) exhibiting distinctive grey pelage with a transverse white band and a stout tail, consistent with historical descriptions of D. sonnerati. The specimen measured 143 mm (head–body) and 26 mm (tail). Despite extensive live-trapping (15 traps, October–December, winter season), no additional individuals were detected. The Nilgiri record lies ~350 km from the type locality, indicating a notable biogeographic disjunction that may represent either a relict population or part of a wider, under-documented range. Targeted surveys in intervening habitats, coupled with genetic analyses, are urgently needed to assess distribution, population connectivity, and taxonomic validity, and to inform conservation strategies for this potentially rare and evolutionarily distinct shrew.

کلیدواژه‌ها

Biogeographic disjunction؛ Diplomesodon sonnerati؛ India؛ Nilgiris؛ Rediscovery؛ Small mammal survey