Common Tree Shrew
| Class: Mammalia:
Mammals |
Diet: Insects (particularly
ants), spiders, seeds, buds, probably also small birds and mice |
| Order:
Scandentia: Tree Shrews |
| Size: body:14
- 23 cm (5 1/2 - 9 in), tail: 12 - 21 cm (4 3/4 - 8 3/4 in) |
| Family: Tupaiidae:
Tree Shrews |
Conservation Status:
Non-threatened |
| Scientific Name:
Tupaia glis |
Habitat: rainforest,
woodland, bamboo scrub |
| Range:
South and Southeast Asia: India to Vietnam and Malaysia, Southern China,
Indonesia |
 A
squirrel-like creature, with a long, bushy tail, the common tree shrew
is active and lively, climbing with great agility in the trees but also
spending much of its time on the ground, feeding. Its diet is varied and
includes insects (particularly ants), spiders, seeds, buds and probably
also small birds and mice. It normally lives alone or with a mate. Breeding
seems to occur at any time of year, and a rough nest is made in a hole
in a fallen tree or among tree roots. In Malaysia, where breeding of this
species has been most closely observed, females produce litters of 1 to
3 young after a gestation of 46 to 50 days. The newborn young are naked,
with closed eyes, but are ready to leave the nest about 33 days after birth.
  
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