521.

Short-tailed Brucie

Brucepattersonius soricinus

French: Brucie soricin / German: Kurzschwanz-Brucie / Spanish: Ratén hocicudo enano de cola corta

Other common names: Soricine Akodont, Soricine Brucie

Taxonomy. Brucepattersonius soricinus Hershkovitz, 1998, Ribeirao Fundo, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Brucepattersonius igniventris named by P. Hershkovitz in 1998, is considered a junior synonym of B. soricinus, which is the type species of the genus. Monotypic.

Distribution. SE & S Brazil (Minas Gerais, Sao Paulo, and Parana states).

Descriptive notes. Head—body 98-128 mm, tail 82-99 mm, ear 15-18 mm, hindfoot 24-26 mm; weight 30-35 g. Tail of the Short-tailed Brucie is relatively short (mean for 26 specimens 88 mm), slightly shorter than head-body length (mean 99 mm). Pelage is moderately appressed; fur is c.8 mm long; dorsum is brownish to dark brownish, crown-rump brown, hairs with tips minutely tipped blackish, followed by ocherous orange band and dark gray base; guard hairs are entirely blackish; sides are paler than back, with wide ocherous bands, basal portions gray; side color merges into grayish chest and belly that can be washed reddish, with broadly banded pale ocherous hair and dark gray bases; throat and chin are dominantly gray, with hair directed forward; color of forelimbs and hindlimbs are like trunk; and digital vibrissae are sparse, and facial vibrissae are short, hardly reaching ear base when laid back.

Habitat. Atlantic Forest environments in well-preserved relicts of moist broadleaf forest in underground litter, native vegetation in early stages of regeneration, mosaics of forest remnants, and anthropogenic habitats from sea level to elevations of more than 2000 m.

Food and Feeding. Stomach contents of nine Short-tailed Brucies revealed diets of mostly insects ( Coleoptera adults, Orthoptera, Opiliones, Diptera larvae, and Formicidae) and other arthropods (Araneae). Stable isotopes levels were relatively high in 015N, suggesting animal prey and fungi as important food sources.

Breeding. No information.

Activity patterns. No information.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. No information.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List.

Bibliography. Dias (2016), Hershkovitz (1998), Leite & Patterson (2008b), Pardini & Umetsu (2006), Pinotti et al. (2011), Umetsu & Pardini (2007), Vilela (2005), Vilela et al. (2015).