CreatureData

Shinto shrew

Sorex shinto Thomas, 1905

LCLeast Concernmammals

The shinto shrew (Sorex shinto) is a species in the family Soricidae, order Eulipotyphla. Recorded adults weigh 6 g to 6.3 g and live up to 2 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

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Quick facts about the shinto shrew

Weight
6 g – 6.3 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
2 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
3 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
6.82src for Young per litter or clutch
Litters or clutches a year
3src for Litters or clutches a year
Active
Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the shinto shrew live?

Not recorded

What is the shinto shrew?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The Shinto shrew (Sorex shinto) is a species of shrew of the genus Sorex that lives only on the islands of Japan. It is a mole-like mammal with a pointed snout, very small ears, and a relatively long tail. Like most shrews, it is tiny, has poor eyesight, and a very good sense of hearing and smell which it uses to locate its prey, mainly insects.

At one time, the Shinto shrew was classified as a subspecies of Sorex caecutiens, or Laxmann's shrew, however as scientists collected new data on these shrews, such as genetic testing, it was decided that they should be classified as a separate species.

There are three distinct populations of Shinto shrew living on the islands of Japan. Living as isolated groups on their respective islands prevents the populations from interbreeding and can allow variations to develop between the groups over time. Because of these differences, the three groups have been classified as subspecies of S. shinto. Those living on Sado Island are S. shinto sadonis, those living on Shikoku Island are S. shinto shikokensis, and those living on Japan's main island of Honshu are S. shinto shinto.

From the Wikipedia article “Shinto shrew” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shinto_shrew&oldid=1352847011), 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 shinto shrew endangered?

The shinto shrew is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. 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 shinto shrew classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classMammalia
  4. orderEulipotyphla
  5. familySoricidae
  6. genusSorex
  7. SpeciesSorex shinto Thomas, 1905
Other names and names in other languages (10)
  • rejsek šintojskýCzech
  • Shinto-SpitzmausGerman
  • Musaraña sintoistaSpanish
  • japaninpäästäinenFinnish
  • sadosaarenpäästäinenFinnish
  • Musaraigne shintoFrench
  • サドトガリネズミJapanese
  • シントウトガリネズミJapanese
  • Ryjówka shintoPolish
  • Японская бурозубкаRussian

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the shinto shrew

Other species in the same genus Sorex.

CompareShinto shrew vs Eurasian pygmy shrewShinto shrew vs Common shrewShinto shrew vs Laxmann's shrewShinto shrew vs Eurasian least shrew

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the shinto shrew?

An adult shinto shrew weighs 6 g – 6.3 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the shinto shrew endangered?

The shinto shrew is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

How long does the shinto shrew live?

The shinto shrew has a recorded lifespan of 2 years.

What kind of animal is the shinto shrew?

The shinto shrew (Sorex shinto) belongs to the family Soricidae in the order Eulipotyphla.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Shinto shrew (Sorex shinto). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/shinto-shrew

MLA

“Shinto shrew (Sorex shinto).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/shinto-shrew.

BibTeX
@misc{shinto_shrew_2026,
  title = {Shinto shrew (Sorex shinto)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/shinto-shrew},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}