Desman

For other uses, see Desman (disambiguation).

Desmanini[1]
Temporal range: Late Oligocene–Recent
Russian desman (Desmana moschata)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Eulipotyphla
Family: Talpidae
Subfamily: Talpinae
Tribe: Desmanini
Thomas, 1912

Desmans are diving insectivores of the tribe Desmanini (also considered a subfamily, Desmaninae) in the mole family, Talpidae.

This tribe consists of two extant monotypic genera of semiaquatic insectivores found in Europe: one in Russia and the other in the northwest of the Iberian peninsula and Pyrenees. Both species are endangered, the Russian desman critically so.[2][3] They have webbed paws and their front paws are not well-adapted for digging. Desmans were much more diverse and widespread during the Miocene, with two genera, Gaillardia and Magnatalpa, being present in North America.[4][5] Both living species are thought to have derived from the fossil genus Archaeodesmana.[6]

  1. ^ Hutterer, R. (2005). Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 303. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ^ Quaglietta, L. (2022) [amended version of 2021 assessment]. "Galemys pyrenaicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T8826A214429993. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T8826A214429993.en.
  3. ^ Rutovskaya, M.; Gazzard, A.; Turvey, S.T. (2023). "Desmana moschata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2023: e.T6506A231334630. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T6506A231334630.en.
  4. ^ Martin, James E. (2017). "A rare occurrence of the fossil water mole Gaillardia (Desmanini, Talpidae) from the Neogene in North America" (PDF). Proceedings of the South Dakota Academy of Science. 96: 95–98.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference gray was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Minwer-Barakat, Raef; García-Alix, Antonio; Martín-Suárez, Elvira; Freudenthal, Matthijs (2020-12-01). "Early Pliocene Desmaninae (Mammalia, Talpidae) from Southern Spain and the Origin of the Genus Desmana". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 40 (5): e1835936. Bibcode:2020JVPal..40E5936M. doi:10.1080/02724634.2020.1835936. ISSN 0272-4634. S2CID 228905970.