In our last issue (Spring 2006) we introduced you to the Species at Risk of extinction in Unama’ki. Missing from those photos was the Gaspe Shrew (Sorex gaspensis). At press time we were still unable to come up with an illustration of this elusive creature that lives in the Cape Breton Highlands. No one we contacted had a photo and the closest we came was a stuffed specimen! Finally, we were able to track down an illustration and the rights to print it from the kind folks at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa.
The Gaspe Shrew is only found in Cape Breton Island, Gaspé Peninsula, and New Brunswick and if you go looking for one (get a photo for us!), check out rock outcrops and steep slopes. Fires and clear-cutting are the major threats to Gaspe Shrews.
For more information on the Gaspe Shrew and other Species at Risk, go to www.uinr.ca/speciesatrisk and follow the links.