Crocidurinae is a subfamily of small mammals in the shrew family Soricidae, which in turn is part of the order Eulipotyphla. A member of this family is called a crocidurine, or a white-toothed shrew. Crocidurinae is one of three subfamilies in Soricidae, along with the African shrews of Myosoricinae and the red-toothed shrews of Soricinae. They are found in Africa, Europe, and Asia, primarily in forests, savannas, shrublands, and grasslands, though some species can also be found in wetlands, rocky areas, or coastal areas. They range in size from the Etruscan shrew, one of the smallest mammal species at plus a tail, to the goliath shrew, at plus a tail. Crocidurines primarily eat invertebrates, small mammals, frogs, toads, and lizards. Almost no crocidurines have population estimates, but 25 species are categorized as endangered species, while the Andaman shrew, Harenna shrew, Jenkins's shrew, and Nicobar shrew are categorized as critically endangered, and the Christmas Island shrew was declared extinct in 2025.
The 244 extant species of Crocidurinae are divided into nine genera; 202 of them are in Crocidura, the most species of any mammal genus. A few extinct prehistoric Crocidurinae species have been discovered, though due to ongoing research and discoveries the exact number and categorization is not fixed.
Conventions
The author citation for the species or genus is given after the scientific name; parentheses around the author citation indicate that this was not the original taxonomic placement. Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the crocidurine's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted. All extinct genera or species listed alongside extant species went extinct after 1500 CE, and are indicated by a dagger symbol "".
Classification The subfamily Crocidurinae consists of nine genera: Crocidura, containing 202 extant species; Diplomesodon and Feroculus with a single species each; Paracrocidura, with three species; Ruwenzorisorex, with one species; Scutisorex, containing two species; Solisorex, with one species, Suncus, containing nineteen species; and Sylvisorex, containing fifteen species.
Subfamily Crocidurinae Genus Crocidura (white-toothed shrews): 203 species (1 extinct) Genus Diplomesodon (piebald shrew): one species Genus Feroculus (Kelaart's long-clawed shrew): one species Genus Paracrocidura (large-headed shrews): three species Genus Ruwenzorisorex (Ruwenzori shrew): one species Genus Scutisorex (hero shrews): two species Genus Solisorex (Pearson's long-clawed shrew): one species Genus Suncus (musk shrews and pygmy shrews): nineteen species Genus Sylvisorex (forest shrews): fifteen species
Crocidurines The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by the reference work Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis, as supported by both the IUCN and the American Society of Mammalogists.
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