First results on the feeding ecology of the Transcaucasian water shrew Neomys teres (Soricomorpha: Soricidae) from Armenia

Abstract

Microscopic examination of alimentary tracts of fourteen Neomys teres (Miller, 1908) from a mountainous region in northern Armenia produced the first data on the diet of this almost unknown species of conservation concern. Twenty-three different prey types were distinguished in summer-caught shrews, all invertebrates (14 terrestrial and 9 aquatic in origin). The dominant dietary items were Coleoptera and Diptera adults, Araneae, Opiliones and Lumbricidae plus freshwater crustaceans and Trichoptera larvae. Prey ranged from <3 to >16 mm in length but those eaten most frequently were 6-10 mm in length. Although it was captured beside streams and rivers, aquatic prey comprised only 27% of dietary composition. Despite its morphological similarity to N. fodiens, its foraging niche more closely resembles that of upland populations of N. anomalus and its reliance on aquatic habitats remains equivocal.