| Black and Rufous Elephant Shrew | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Macroscelidea |
| Family: | Macroscelididae |
| Genus: | Rhynchocyon |
| Species: | R. petersi |
| Binomial name | |
| Rhynchocyon petersi Bocage, 1880 |
|
| Black and Rufous Elephant Shrew range | |
The Black and Rufous Elephant Shrew (Rhynchocyon petersi), also known as the Black and Rufous Sengi, is one of 16 species of elephant shrew alive today in Africa. As other members of the genus Rhynchocyon, it is a relatively large species, with adults averaging c. 28 cm (11 in) in length and 450-700 g (1-1.5 lb) in weight. It is endemic to Kenya and Tanzania. It eats insects and small mammals (especially the Black Rat) as well as vegetation.
Because they are classified as vulnerable, several zoos have begun breeding these elephant shrews, including the Philadelphia Zoo, which has a successful breeding program. Two Black and Rufous Elephant Shrew brothers were born on February 4th 2007 at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC. They now reside, for the time being, at the Yale Peabody Museum in New Haven, CT as part of the Tree of Life Exhibit.[2]
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