Cape rock sengi
Elephantulus edwardii (A. Smith, 1839)
The cape rock sengi (Elephantulus edwardii) is a species in the family Macroscelididae, order Macroscelidea. Recorded adults weigh 48 g to 49.9 g and live up to 5.66 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the cape rock sengi
- Weight
- 48 g – 49.9 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 5.66 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Invertivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1.8src for Young per litter or clutch
- Active
- By day (diurnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the cape rock sengi live?
Not recorded
What is the cape rock sengi?
The Cape sengi or Cape elephant shrew (Elephantulus edwardii), also known as the Cape rock sengi or Cape rock elephant shrew or Cape rock sengi, is a species of small mammal in the sengi family (Macroscelididae). It is endemic to South Africa, although it is a relatively common animal. Its natural habitat is rocky areas. Despite often being called elephant shrews, the sengis are not closely related to true shrews, nor to rodents such as mice. E. edwardii has been observed to be a non-flying mammal pollinator of the pagoda lily (Massonia bifolia). Sengis are floral pollinators due to their largely insectivorous diet. Elephant-shrews are pollinators of Hyobanche atropurpurea. It uses its long slender tongue to feed on the pagoda lily's nectar while getting the lily's pollen on its long nose. E. edwardii is also a pollinator of Protea sulphurea.
From the Wikipedia article “Cape rock sengi” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cape_rock_sengi&oldid=1360554363), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the cape rock sengi endangered?
The cape rock sengi is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the cape rock sengi classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderMacroscelidea
- familyMacroscelididae
- genusElephantulus
- SpeciesElephantulus edwardii (A. Smith, 1839)
Synonyms Macroscelides edwardii
Other names and names in other languages (20)
- Cape elephant shrewEnglish
- Cape elephant shrewEnglish
- Cape elephant-shrewEnglish
- Cape rock elephant shrewEnglish
- Cape rock elephant-shrewEnglish
- Cape rock elephant-shrewEnglish
- Cape sengiEnglish
- Kaapse KlipklaasneusAfrikaans
- bércoun kapskýCzech
- Kap-ElefantenspitzmausGerman
- Ελεφαντομέγαιρο του ΕντουάρντιGreek
- Sengi de El CaboSpanish
- kapinkuonokasFinnish
- ケープハネジネズミJapanese
- KappsengiNorwegian Bokmål
- KappelefantspissmusNorwegian Bokmål
- Kaapse OlifantspitsmuisDutch
- ryjoskoczek przylądkowyPolish
- Musaranho-elefante-do-CaboPortuguese
- Прыгунчик ЭдвардаRussian
Relatives of the cape rock sengi
Other species in the same genus Elephantulus.
Eastern rock sengi
Elephantulus myurus
Bushveld sengi
Elephantulus intufi
Western rock sengi
Elephantulus rupestris
Short-snouted sengi
Elephantulus brachyrhynchus
Dusky-footed sengi
Elephantulus fuscipes
Dusky sengi
Elephantulus fuscus
CompareCape rock sengi vs Eastern rock sengiCape rock sengi vs Bushveld sengiCape rock sengi vs Western rock sengiCape rock sengi vs Short-snouted sengi
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the cape rock sengi?
An adult cape rock sengi weighs 48 g – 49.9 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the cape rock sengi endangered?
The cape rock sengi is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the cape rock sengi live?
The cape rock sengi has a recorded lifespan of 5.66 years.
What kind of animal is the cape rock sengi?
The cape rock sengi (Elephantulus edwardii) belongs to the family Macroscelididae in the order Macroscelidea.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Cape rock sengi (Elephantulus edwardii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/cape-rock-sengi
“Cape rock sengi (Elephantulus edwardii).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/cape-rock-sengi.
@misc{cape_rock_sengi_2026,
title = {Cape rock sengi (Elephantulus edwardii)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/cape-rock-sengi},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}