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<p>Accurate species identification in the shrew genus <i>Suncus</i> is often difficult because of subtle external and cranial morphological differences among taxa. Quantitative morphometric assessment is therefore important for evaluating species-level variation and improving taxonomic resolution within the genus. In this study, we assessed morphometric variation among five South Asian species of <i>Suncus</i> (<i>S. etruscus</i>,<i> S. montanus</i>, <i>S. murinus</i>, <i>S. niger</i> and <i>S. stoliczkanus</i>) using 629 museum specimens deposited in the Zoological Survey of India. External body and craniomandibular measurements were analysed using descriptive statistics, and multivariate statistical approaches. The results revealed clear interspecific differences in body and cranial size, with <i>S. murinus</i> representing the largest species and <i>S. etruscus</i> the smallest. Principal component analysis demonstrated that overall body and cranial size accounted for most of the observed variation and effectively separated the examined taxa, although partial overlap was observed among intermediate-sized species. Multivariate analyses indicated significant interspecific differences across all examined variables. The findings demonstrate that morphometric approaches are useful for distinguishing South Asian <i>Suncus</i> species and highlight the importance of museum collections for documenting morphological variation in poorly studied small mammals.</p>

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Morphometric assessment of South Asian Suncus shrews (Eulipotyphla: Soricidae)

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月25日

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  • Joshua Arul Rocco,
  • Manokaran Kamalakannan

摘要

Accurate species identification in the shrew genus Suncus is often difficult because of subtle external and cranial morphological differences among taxa. Quantitative morphometric assessment is therefore important for evaluating species-level variation and improving taxonomic resolution within the genus. In this study, we assessed morphometric variation among five South Asian species of Suncus (S. etruscus, S. montanus, S. murinus, S. niger and S. stoliczkanus) using 629 museum specimens deposited in the Zoological Survey of India. External body and craniomandibular measurements were analysed using descriptive statistics, and multivariate statistical approaches. The results revealed clear interspecific differences in body and cranial size, with S. murinus representing the largest species and S. etruscus the smallest. Principal component analysis demonstrated that overall body and cranial size accounted for most of the observed variation and effectively separated the examined taxa, although partial overlap was observed among intermediate-sized species. Multivariate analyses indicated significant interspecific differences across all examined variables. The findings demonstrate that morphometric approaches are useful for distinguishing South Asian Suncus species and highlight the importance of museum collections for documenting morphological variation in poorly studied small mammals.