Common Tenrec
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The largest of the tenrecs. The body is grey-brown (with reddish patches), the face and undersides are lighter. The pelage is made up of both normal (if coarse) and spiny hairs. The snout is long and pointed with long dark whiskers (vibrissae). (Garbutt, 1999)
Can be found on night walks between November and April, with luck.
Head/Body Length |
26-39cm |
|---|---|
Tail Length |
1cm |
Weight |
1-2kg |
Omnivorous, primarily eating insects but also other invertebrates. They forage in leaf-litter and will root around in the top layers of soil.
They are nocturnal and primarily active between 18:00-21:00 and 01:00-05:00.
Solitary. They live in burrows during the day. They estivate during the dry winter (although in some rainforests there is enough food that this is unnecessary).
The mating season is October-November (mostly) and most births occur December-January. The young start to open their eyes at 9 days and complete the process by 14 days. Around 20~25 days they start to take solid food and forage with their mother. When lactating, females are forced to forage into the daylight in order to provide milk for their large litters, the young have a streaked pelage at first to provide camouflage. Young remain with their mother for another 3 to 6 weeks. (Garbutt, 1999) Young are protected by their parents (Poduschka, 1996). By 60 days their coloration changes to adult. They are fully grown after 3~4 months.
They are one of the most fecund of mammals, litter sizes of 32 infants have been reported for captive species. In the wild 12-16 is normal. Females have 12 pairs of nipples (more than any other mammal).
May hiss or squeal when alarmed.
Mammalia -> Insectivora -> Tenrecidae (Tenrecinae) -> Tenrec ecaudatus
Garbutt, N. 1999, Mammals of Madagascar, Yale University Press
Poduschka W; 1996 "Hyperthelia, litter size, and duration of pregnancy in the subfamily Tenrecinae Cabrera, 1925 (Mammalia: Insectivora: Tenrecidae), with remarks on the longitudinal stripe pattern in the genus Hemicentetes", Contributions to Zoology, 66:(2) 119-128.
-- Other Mammals -- RNP
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Mother and infants (captive at Madagascar
Exotics)P2