Long-nosed caenolestid
| Long-nosed caenolestid | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Paucituberculata |
| Family: | Caenolestidae |
| Genus: | Rhyncholestes Osgood, 1924 |
| Species: | R. raphanurus |
| Binomial name | |
| Rhyncholestes raphanurus Osgood, 1924 | |
| Subspecies | |
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| Range of the long-nosed caenolestid | |
| Synonyms | |
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The long-nosed caenolestid (Rhyncholestes raphanurus), also known as the Chilean shrew opossum or long-nosed shrew opossum, is a shrew opossum that occurs in temperate forests of Argentina and southern Chile. It was first described by American zoologist Wilfred Hudson Osgood in 1924. The long-nosed caenolestid resembles Caenolestes species in morphology. It is characterized by a long, pointed snout, small eyes and ears, and one claw on a digit of each of the thin limbs. Little is known of its behavior; it appears to be terrestrial (lives on land), nocturnal (active mainly at night) and omnivorous. It prefers cool, moist areas, and has a small distribution. It is classified as near threatened by the IUCN.