Small and cryptic, shrews and moles represent some of the most obscure and least familiar of any British Columbian mammals. Rarely observed by the general public or naturalists, human encounters are typically limited to kills brought in by the family cat or a dead animal found by chance. Despite the new focus on small mammals in biodiversity studies by provincial wildlife and forestry agencies, only a few of the province’ s shrews or moles have received any detailed study— a contrast with the effort directed at other small mammals. Much remains to be learned about their distribution, habitat requirements, breeding biology and taxonomy in the province. This book will stimulate more attention for these much-neglected mammals.

Small and cryptic, shrews and moles represent some of the most obscure and least familiar of any British Columbian mammals. Rarely observed by the general public or naturalists, human encounters are typically limited to kills brought in by the family cat or a dead animal found by chance. Despite the new focus on small mammals in biodiversity studies by provincial wildlife and forestry agencies, only a few of the province’ s shrews or moles have received any detailed study— a contrast with the effort directed at other small mammals. Much remains to be learned about their distribution, habitat requirements, breeding biology and taxonomy in the province. This book will stimulate more attention for these much-neglected mammals.