An elusive California mammal has just been photographed alive
17 comments
·February 2, 2025thih9
corytheboyd
Thank you! I have no patience for articles headlined with “Picture of rare <blank> taken!” that do not lead with the picture. If I want to read more about it, I will, but lead with the damn image. I know I know, the whole point is to show me ads, etc. Still gonna fart my fart into the wind I guess.
spondylosaurus
Cute little critter!
Looking at that Wikipedia page, I didn't realize there were multiple "grading" systems for conservation risk. Interesting that two different systems have two different risk assessments for the same animal.
Loughla
Shrews are cute but MEAN.
A few years ago we had a couple of feet of snow in a day. As I was snow blowing the driveway, I noticed all these little tunnels on the edge that was cut off by the side of the blower.
Then I saw a tiny little animal. I thought he was a mole. So I took my glove off and picked him up, as a good hillbilly would do.
That thing bit me like fifteen times up my thumb before I could react to yeet him across the yard.
Lesson learned.
tyre
That doesn’t sound mean. It sounds like you shouldn’t pick up a wild animal.
palmotea
> The Mount Lyell shrew (Sorex lyelli) is 9 to 10 centimeters long and weighs between 2 and 3 grams, according to the researchers' measurements.
That's got to be a typo...
hnburnsy
No typo apparently...
>Editor's note: This story was corrected at 12:15 p.m., Jan. 17, to clarify that the shrews weigh 2 to 3 grams, according to the researchers' measurements.
shpongled
Probably 20-30 grams. Average lab mouse is around that weight and length [1]
[1] https://www.jax.org/jax-mice-and-services/strain-data-sheet-...
s0rce
Must be, a typical hummingbird weighs more than that (4g).
Finnucane
The reason they're never seen alive is because they're actually balloon animals.
maxweylandt
Very well done, always nice to see non (not yet?) professional scientists contribute :)
This reminds me I've been meaning to set up a moth trap.
skrebbel
Seriously a title like that and it's not Bigfoot?
giancarlostoro
With the timeline we're in, it's only a matter of time?
loganmarchione
I want to believe
dkkergoog
[dead]
idlewords
[flagged]
Mount Lyell shrew
Image: https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_236362254...
Wikipedia: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Lyell_shrew