Common box vs Eurasian Least Shrew

Buxus sempervirens compared with Sorex minutissimus

Key Differences

Common box is Not Evaluated while Eurasian Least Shrew is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common box	Eurasian Least Shrew
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Buxales (Buxales)	Soricomorpha (Soricomorpha)
Family	Buxaceae	Soricidae
Genus	Buxus	Sorex
Species	Buxus sempervirens	Sorex minutissimus

Conservation Status

Common box

NE — Not Evaluated

Eurasian Least Shrew

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common box	Eurasian Least Shrew
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common box

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Libya, Sao Tome and Principe), Asia (Armenia, India, Taiwan), Europe (15 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador).

Eurasian Least Shrew

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Norway, Russia, and Sweden.

Common box

The common box (<em>Buxus sempervirens</em>) is a slow-growing evergreen shrub or small tree with one of the widest distributions of any species in its genus, occurring across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. It typically inhabits diverse terrestrial ecosystems, from limestone hillsides and rocky slopes to woodland understories and cultivated gardens. The common box has not been formally evaluated on the IUCN Red List. Long valued in horticulture and topiary, this species is widely cultivated and naturalized far beyond its native range in southern Europe, western Asia, and northern Africa. Its dense, hard wood is among the heaviest produced by any European tree, historically used for woodworking and engraving. The species often forms dense thickets in natural settings, providing important shelter for invertebrates and small vertebrates. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.