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What the sources say

Etruscan ShrewSuncus etruscus

Every figure, record and mechanism on the Etruscan Shrew profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 47 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

Suncus etruscus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T90389138A221340889.

The page saysThe IUCN Red List rates the species Least Concern
The source saysIUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC).
The page saysLeast Concern
The source saysIUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC).Note: Status of Suncus etruscus; category read through GBIF's copy of the Red List, assessed 2023.

Source
02

Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Suncus etruscus (white-toothed pygmy shrew). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

The page saysMost adults weigh 1.8 to 3 grams and measure 35 to 50 mm long
The source saysmost adults weighing between 1.8 and 3 grams and ranging from 35 to 50 mm in length
The page saysMost adults are 35 to 50 millimetres long and weigh between 1.8 and 3 grams
The source saysmost adults weighing between 1.8 and 3 grams and ranging from 35 to 50 mm in length
The page saysForest, shrub and grassland, mainly in the Mediterranean lowlands from Portugal to the Middle East
The source saysthey are mainly confined to the Mediterranean lowlands from Portugal to the Middle East ... The habitat of Etruscan shrews includes forest, shrub and grassland environments.
The page saysAnts and other small insects
The source saysThey eat ants and other small insects
The page saysIt eats ants and other small insects
The source saysThey eat ants and other small insects
The page saysEtruscan shrews live mainly in the Mediterranean lowlands, from Portugal to the Middle East
The source saysthey are mainly confined to the Mediterranean lowlands from Portugal to the Middle East
The page saysTheir habitat includes forest, shrub and grassland
The source saysThe habitat of Etruscan shrews includes forest, shrub and grassland environments.
The page saysOwls are known predators
The source saysOwls are known predators.
The page saysThey are hard to keep alive in captivity
The source saysEtruscan shrews are hard to keep alive in captivity due to their size and their large energy requirements.

Source
03

AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15, Human Ageing Genomic Resources

AnAge entry for Suncus etruscus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Build 15, Human Ageing Genomic Resources.

The page saysOne captive lived 3.2 years
The source saysOne captive specimen lived 3.2 years
The page saysAnAge rates that record as questionable and says the real maximum may be considerably higher
The source saysData quality Questionable ... Maximum longevity may still be considerably underestimated.
The page saysLongevity has not been studied in detail in captivity, where these shrews are hard to keep
The source saysLongevity has not been studied in detail in captivity due to difficulties in keeping these animals in captivity.
The page saysThe record in AnAge is one captive shrew that lived 3.2 years, a figure it marks as questionable and possibly a considerable underestimate
The source saysData quality Questionable ... One captive specimen lived 3.2 years, though [ 0671 ]. Maximum longevity may still be considerably underestimated.

Source
04

Journal of Experimental Biology 1996

Heart and respiratory rates and their significance for convective oxygen transport rates in the smallest mammal, the Etruscan shrew Suncus etruscus. Journal of Experimental Biology, 1996.

The page saysOne of the smallest mammals alive, with a heart that has beaten 1,511 times in a minute.
The source saysThe highest single value recorded was 1511 min-1
The page saysA resting shrew's heart beats 835 times a minute on average
The source saysThe mean +/- S.D. heart rate of resting animals (ambient temperature 22 degrees C) was 835 +/- 107 min-1
The page saysthe highest single value recorded was 1,511 beats a minute
The source saysThe highest single value recorded was 1511 min-1
The page saysThat is the highest heart rate reported so far for an endotherm, an animal that makes its own body heat
The source sayswhich is the highest heart rate reported so far for an endotherm
The page saysA resting shrew also takes 661 breaths a minute on average
The source saysThe mean resting respiratory rate was 661 +/- 93 min-1
The page saysIts specific oxygen consumption rate, which is oxygen use relative to body mass, is 67 times higher than a resting human's
The source saysthe specific oxygen consumption rate is 67 times higher in resting S. etruscus than in resting humans
The page saysA heart that has beaten up to 1,511 times a minute, the highest rate reported for a warm-blooded animal
The source saysThe highest single value recorded was 1511 min-1, which is the highest heart rate reported so far for an endotherm
The page saysA resting Etruscan shrew's heart beats 835 times a minute on average
The source saysThe mean +/- S.D. heart rate of resting animals (ambient temperature 22 degrees C) was 835 +/- 107 min-1
The page saysweightKg: 0.002
The source saysthe smallest mammal (mean adult body mass 2g)Note: task #1261

Source
05

Journal of Experimental Biology 1997

Rates of rewarming, heart and respiratory rates and their significance for oxygen transport during arousal from torpor in the smallest mammal, the Etruscan shrew Suncus etruscus. Journal of Experimental Biology, 1997.

The page saysShrews put into torpor, a state of lowered activity, cooled to a mean low of 12.1 degrees Celsius
The source saystorpor was induced by deprivation of food and a cold environment ... the lowest mean (+/- S.D.) body temperature (Tb) of 12.1 +/- 1.2 degrees C
The page saysThey then rewarmed at 0.83 degrees a minute on average, among the highest rates recorded in mammals
The source saysThe mean rate from 12 degrees C to normothermia amounted to 0.83 degree C min-1, which is among the highest values recorded in mammals.
The page saysUp to about 17 degrees, the heat came mainly from brown adipose tissue, or brown fat
The source saysUp to a body temperature of approximately 17 degrees C, the heat for rewarming was mainly produced in the BAT
The page saysIn these shrews it made up 9.2% of body mass, which the 1997 study found higher than in any other mammal
The source saysThe fraction of brown adipose tissue (BAT) was 9.2 +/- 1.6% of body mass, which is higher than in any other mammal.

Source
06

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2006

Tactile guidance of prey capture in Etruscan shrews. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2006.

The page saysA cricket can be almost as big as the shrew itself
The source saysCrickets are exquisitely mechanosensitive, fast-moving prey, almost as big as the shrew itself.
The page saysIt tracks prey down in darkness by touch
The source saysEtruscan shrews are forced to detect, overwhelm, and kill prey in large numbers in darkness. ... tactile shape cues are both necessary and sufficient for evoking attacksNote: The two sets of whiskers (macrovibrissae and microvibrissae) are the next claim.
The page sayslong ones that help it aim its attack and short ones around the mouth
The source saysboth macrovibrissae and microvibrissae are required for prey capture, with the macrovibrissae being involved in attack targeting
The page saysusing two sets of whiskers
The source saysboth macrovibrissae and microvibrissae are required for prey captureNote: The two sets are the macrovibrissae and microvibrissae.
The page saysIt needs both sets to catch prey
The source saysboth macrovibrissae and microvibrissae are required for prey capture

Source
07

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B 2011

The neurobiology of Etruscan shrew active touch. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 2011.

The page saysOne of the smallest mammals alive, with a heart that has beaten 1,511 times in a minute.
The source saysthe Etruscan shrew is not only one of the smallest mammals
The page saysone of the smallest mammals alive
The source saysthe Etruscan shrew is not only one of the smallest mammals
The page saysThe Etruscan shrew is one of the smallest mammals alive
The source saysthe Etruscan shrew is not only one of the smallest mammals
The page saysThat is the highest heart rate reported so far for an endotherm, an animal that makes its own body heat
The source saysA maximal heart rate of up to 1500 beats per minute exceeds all values reported for other endothermic animalsNote: A 2011 review confirms the 1996 record still stood.
The page saysA heart that has beaten up to 1,511 times a minute, the highest rate reported for a warm-blooded animal
The source saysA maximal heart rate of up to 1500 beats per minute exceeds all values reported for other endothermic animalsNote: 2011 review: the record still stood after the 1996 paper.
The page saysThe shrew can react to prey movement in as little as 25 to 30 milliseconds
The source sayscan react with latencies as short as 25–30 ms to prey movement
The page saysShrews as small as this one need to eat at least every hour
The source saysShrews as small as S. etruscus need to ingest food at least every hour
The page saysWhen food is short and the air is cold, they can enter torpor, a state of reduced body temperature and activity that cuts their energy use
The source saysin case of food restriction and at low ambient temperature, they can reduce their body temperature and enter a torpid state to cut down their resting energy expenditure. Torpor is defined as a state of decreased physiological activity, usually characterized by a reduced body temperature

Source
08

Roth-Alpermann & Brecht 2009

Roth-Alpermann & Brecht (2009). Vibrissal touch in the Etruscan shrew. Scholarpedia.

The page saysThe shrew feeds up to 25 times a day and eats more than its own body weight in food
The source saysThey feed up to 25 times a day and consume more than their own body weight in food.
The page sayscrickets are among its preferred food
The source sayscrickets are amongst their preferred food
The page sayslong ones that help it aim its attack and short ones around the mouth
The source saysThe elongated rostrum of the shrew has long whiskers referred to as macrovibrissae (Figure 1 A, B); the shrew’s mouth is surrounded by a dense array of short whiskers, the so-called microvibrissae
The page saysIt can also enter slits as thin as 7 mm to capture prey
The source saysthey are able to enter and capture prey in slits as thin as 7 millimeters
The page saysit shelters in old dry stone walls
The source saysseek shelter in old dry stone walls, under leaves or pieces of bark on the ground or in loose soil
The page saysAround the Mediterranean they like abandoned olive groves and vineyards overrun by shrubs
The source saysIn the Mediterranean region it prefers abandoned olive groves, vineyards, and other cultivated areas overrun by shrubs

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.