The title for the world’s smallest mammal is shared by two animals, the Etruscan shrew and the Hog-nosed bat. Both of these animals weigh less than two grams. Both of these tiny mammals are endangered. The Hog-nosed bat is found in southeast Thailand, and the Etruscan shrew is located in western Europe and Western Asia.
To start off with, The Etruscan shrew needs to eat every 15-30 minutes otherwise it will die from starvation, this makes them constantly scavenging their whole lives. The Hog-nosed lives in limestone caves and scavenges in the surrounding forests. The Etruscan shrew lives in cold grassy climates because they can’t survive in climates that are hotter than 77 degrees fahrenheit. The hog-nosed bat is also called the Bumblebee Bat because it is the same size as a bumblebee. The Etruscan shrew has a very fast heartbeat “1,200 per minute.” according to www.nwf.org. The Etruscan has the very short life of 11 to 12 months and only sleeps for a few minutes at a time. On the other hand the Bumblebee bat lives for 30+ years and sleeps for great amounts of time.
The Hog-nosed bat and the Etruscan Shrew are both endangered species. The Etruscan can be scared to death by a sudden loud noise like thunder which is helping to endanger them. The Shrew also has poison saliva that helps them kill their prey, but the Shrew is not aggressive to humans and their venom cannot hurt humans either. Both of these exotic animals are endangered and need to be helped.
Sources:
ww.nwf.com “The maiming of the Shrew”
www.edgeofexistence.org “Hog-nosed Bat”
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