Long-tailed forest shrew spotted after 46 years

FOR the first time in 46 years, one of the Western Cape’s most mysterious mammals, the Boosmansbos long-tailed forest shrew (Myosorex longicaudatus boosmani), has made a reappearance, exciting conservationists and volunteer biologists.

- STAFF REPORTER

Conservationists from CapeNature, Grootvadersbosch Conservancy and Helihack, together with volunteer biologists, are ecstatic at finding the tiny mammal on the edge of a pristine forest patch on CapeNature’s Boosmansbos Wilderness Area in the Langeberg Mountains.

First described in 1979 by scientist Nico Dippenaar, the shrew was recognised as a unique subspecies, geographically isolated from its relatives by the Gouritz Valley.