Afrosoricida Family Tenrecidae tenrecs and otter shrews 10 genera and 30 species Family Chrysochloridae golden moles 9 genera and 21 species Tenrecidae Fossils known from Mioccene of Africa Madagascar Comoro islands w Central africa otter shrews Dispersed to Madagascar 55 MYA Tenrecs retain many ancestral traits plantigrade pentdactyl hands and feet insectivory large litters cloaca Pentdactyl having five toes fingers Males lack scrotum analogous to elephants Echolocation with tongue clicking for topographic orientation and prey capture Prolonged courtship induced ovulation Shrew to rabbit sized Long snout and small eyes Fur may have spines Insectivorous or omnivorous Inhabit rainforests dry deciduous forest and deserts in madagascar Tenrec eucaudatus Common or tailless tenrec Head body length 250 400mm tail length 10 16mm Mixed spines and hairs roll into defensive posture Nest under rocks in hollow logs hibernates in tunnel that it plugs during dry season Solitary except for mother and young 1 litter year average litter size is 15 Microgale dobsoni Dobson s shrew tenrec Non spiny large tail Forages on forest floor for invertebrates Stores body fat torpid during dry season Monogamous pair bonding Hemicentetes semispinosus Lowland streaked tenrec Mid back quills stridulatory Stridulatory producing sound by rubbing together certain body parts Mother young communication Eats arthropods worms forest dweller retreats to burrows in day active at night Tenrecidae Subfamily Potamogalinae otter shrews Western and central Africa Highly specialized for semi aquatic life Flat rostrum snout with stiff vibrissae Small eyes and reduced ear pinna Body long and streamlined Tail laterally compressed and used for swimming Limnogale webbed hind feet Nocturnal Forages in rivers and streams for aquatic insects and crustaceans Nimba otter shrew Micropotamogale lamottei Hunts crustaceans tadpoles along riverbanks Chrysochloridae golden moles Fossils date to Miocene of Kenya Highly fossorial digging lifestyle Ears lack pinnae and ear canal covered with fur Eyes vestigial covered with skin and fur Skull conical Differing from marsupial mole Leathery snout pad Differ from Talpidae moles Deciduous teeth not lost in utero Mammae in cup like thoracic depressions Zygomatic arch complete Tympanic bullae Feed on legless lizards Forelimbs powerfully built used for digging Digits 2 and 3 bear huge claws Massive malleus used to detect seismic signals low frequency sounds Eremitalpa swims through sand forearms head shoulders Huge olecranon process of ulna triceps Ossified tendon hand flexors Order Macroscelididea Family Macroscelididae elephant shrews Macroscelidea Elephant shrews or sengis 4 genera and 16 species Fossils date to Eocene of northern Africa Disjunct distribution across sub Saharan Africa Long mobile nsout Long slender legs adapted for unning Large eyes and prominent ears Complete auditory bulla Complete zygoma Palatal vacuities Mostly insectivorous Scent marking anal and shoulder glands and foot drumming attract mates to territory Some species use behavioral thermoregulation basking Cecum diverticulum of the intestinal tract at the junction of the small and large Inhabit open plains to tropical forests intestines is present Insectivora like trait W shaped ectolophs like shrew hedgehog Even bigger palatal fenestrae than some marsupials Spectacled Elephant Shrew Diurnal large eyes and ears Monogamous Breeding pair defends territory Intricate paths cleaned regularly Tubulidentata Single species Orycteropus afer Inhabits sub Saharan Africa Fossils appear in Miocene of southen Europe Middle east and Africa Powerful digger Big adults up to 80kg Long skull slender dentary 30 cm tongue Feeds on termites and ants Aardvark Great sense of smell Low metabolic rate and body temp Extensive nasoturbinals bony scrolls deep in nasal cavity Enlarged olfactory centers Specialized nostrils fleshy tentacles and hairs that seal openings Starting slide 34 Tubulidentata Dismantle termite mounds with powerful forelimbs Slow metabolism When danger happens for them the ability to burrow is important Burrows retreats for hyenas ground squirrels monitor lizards warthogs Column shaped teeth For water eat fruits of cucurbit Teeth Ever growing Use to gring down chitin skeletins of what theyre eating Each is rootless up to 1500 hexagonal prisms Each prism has slender tubular pulp cavity Formula 0 0 0 0 2 2 3 2 18