Alpine Shrew vs common shrew

Sorex alpinus compared with Sorex araneus

Key Differences

• Alpine Shrew is Near Threatened while common shrew is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alpine Shrew	common shrew
Kingdom same	Animalia (животные)	Animalia (животные)
Phylum same	Chordata (хордовые)	Chordata (хордовые)
Class same	Mammalia (млекопитающие)	Mammalia (млекопитающие)
Order same	Soricomorpha (землеройкообразные)	Soricomorpha (землеройкообразные)
Family same	Soricidae	Soricidae
Genus same	Sorex	Sorex
Species	Sorex alpinus	Sorex araneus

Evolutionary Relationship

Alpine Shrew and common shrew share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Sorex.

Conservation Status

Alpine Shrew

NT — Near Threatened

common shrew

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alpine Shrew	common shrew
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alpine Shrew

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found in Ukraine. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

common shrew

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (United States).

Alpine Shrew

The Alpine Shrew (Sorex alpinus) is a species in the genus Sorex. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Found in Ukraine. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

common shrew

<em>Sorex araneus</em>, the common shrew, is a small insectivorous mammal in the family Soricidae, order Eulipotyphla, widely distributed across Europe and portions of the United States and Russia. This species inhabits a broad range of terrestrial environments including woodland, grassland, scrubland, hedgerows, and suburban gardens, typically favoring areas with dense ground cover providing both shelter and hunting opportunities. <em>Sorex araneus</em> is among the smallest mammals, with an exceptionally high metabolic rate that necessitates nearly continuous feeding to survive — it must consume close to its own body weight in food each day. Its diet consists primarily of invertebrates including earthworms, beetles, spiders, and other small arthropods found in leaf litter and soil. The species is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, with large and stable populations across its range. Biological traits for this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature in terms of precise standardized averages for lifespan, body length, and weight across populations, though it is known to be a short-lived species with typical wild lifespans of around one year, and is widely studied as a model organism in ecological and physiological research.