Afrosoricida is an order of placental mammals. Members of this order are called afrosoricids, and include golden moles, otter shrews, and tenrecs. They are found in Africa, generally in forests, but also inland wetlands, shrublands, and grasslands. They range in size from the least shrew tenrec, at 4 cm (2 in) plus a 6 cm (2 in) tail, to the giant otter shrew, at 34 cm (13 in) plus a 39 cm (15 in) tail. Afrosoricids primarily eat invertebrates, particularly insects and earthworms, though some will also eat small lizards or other vertebrates. The golden moles have vestigial eyes covered with skin, and track their prey through vibrations rather than sight.[1] No population estimates have been made for any afrosoricid species, though the De Winton's golden mole is classified as Critically Endangered and the giant golden mole, Gunning's golden mole, Jenkins's shrew tenrec, Juliana's golden mole, Marley's golden mole, northern shrew tenrec, and Van Zyl's golden mole are categorized as endangered species.
The fifty-five extant species of Afrosoricida are divided into two suborders, with Chrysochloridea containing the family Chrysochloridae, or golden moles, and Tenrecomorpha containing the families Potamogalidae, or otter shrews, and Tenrecidae, or tenrecs. Chrysochloridae is split into the subfamilies Chrysochlorinae, containing eleven species in six genera, and Amblysominae, containing ten species in four genera. Potamogalidae consists of three species in two genera, while Tenrecidae contains the subfamilies of Geogalinae, comprising a single species, Oryzorictinae, containing twenty-five species in three genera, and Tenrecinae, containing five species in four genera. The order as a whole was traditionally grouped with the hedgehogs, shrews, and moles as part of the order Lipotyphla, but modern molecular phylogenetic analysis resulted in that order being split into Afrosoricida and Eulipotyphla. Few extinct Afrosoricida species have been discovered, though due to ongoing research and discoveries the exact number and categorization are not fixed.[2]