Treeshrews (Order Scandentia), also known as banxrings, are small terrestrial mammals that are endemic to the tropical forests of South and Southeast Asia. They have slender bodies, large eyes, conspicuous ears, and a long muzzle resembling squirrels and true shrews in appearance. However, phylogenetic studies reveal that they are most closely related to primates.
They are typically omnivores, primarily feeding on small invertebrates, like insects and earthworms, apart from fruits and seeds.
They vary in size. One of the larger species of treeshrews, the large treeshrew (Tupaia tana), measures 7.5 to 8.7 in (19 to 22 cm) in length, with the tail almost equal to its body length. In contrast, the pygmy treeshrew (Tupaia minor), a smaller species, is 4.3 to 5.5 in (11 to 14 cm) long, with an even longer tail.
These mammals have slender bodies and limbs with long tails equipped with sharp, curved claws. These claws are larger in terrestrial forms since they are used for digging up insects from the ground. In most species, the tails are furry, though in the pen-tailed treeshrew, the tail is hairless, ending in a feather-like tuft.
Their bodies are covered in dense fur, which may be either soft or harsh in texture. In most treeshrews, the dorsal part of the fur typically ranges from olive to reddish brown and is often speckled with black. In contrast, the ventral part is usually buff to orange-red.
Most arboreal species have large, well-developed eyes specialized for clear binocular vision and conspicuous ears that ensure an acute sense of hearing.
The canines are poorly developed, and the molars are broad and unspecialized. Their dental formula is 2.1.3.3/3.1.3.3.
Treeshrews were initially placed under the now-abandoned order Insectivora but were later shifted to the order Primates since they have similarities in internal characteristics, like brain anatomy.
However, molecular phylogenetic studies revealed the need for a separate taxonomic group for these mammals. Thus, they were finally allotted a separate order, Scandentia, which, along with primates and colugos, formed the grandorder Euarchonta. The Euarchonta, on the other hand, is a sister group to the clade Glires, comprising rodents and lagomorphs, and both groups are combined into the superorder Euarchontoglires. Although treeshrews represent one of the basal groups of Euarchontoglires, their exact phylogenetic position remains uncertain.
Currently, 23 species of treeshrews are divided into two families: Tupaiidae and Ptilocercidae. While the former contains 22 species under three genera, the latter has only one species, the pen-tailed treeshrew, under the genus Ptilocercus. The two families are believed to have separated about 60 million years ago.
Since these treeshrews resemble squirrels, both in appearance and behavior, Sir Stamford Raffles named this genus Tupaia from the Malay word tupai, meaning squirrel.
Although fossil records of treeshrews are rare, the species Eodendrogale parva is considered the oldest that existed during the Middle Eocene Epoch in Henan, China.
Other fossils dating back to the Miocene and Pliocene Epochs have been recovered from Thailand, Pakistan, and India. While most of these fossils belong to the family Tupaiidae, one fossil of the Oligocene Epoch (probably a member of the genus Ptilocercus) is considered a pen-tailed treeshrew.
Treeshrews are native to the tropical forests of South and Southeast Asia. They usually nest in cavities on the ground and in tree trunks and rock crevices.
They are omnivores feeding on a variety of food items. Those that forage on the ground consume earthworms, insects, and other arthropods, while those foraging on trees feed primarily on fruits and seeds. Of all fruits, they prefer eating fruits of stinking corpse lily (Rafflesia) plants.
Pen-tailed treeshrews consume large quantities of naturally fermented nectar (having up to 3.8% alcohol) that they derive from bertam palm (Eugeissona tristis) flower buds. They also occasionally eat small geckos.
It is observed that treeshrews tend to eat foods rich in the highly pungent compound capsaicin (an analgesic commonly taken by humans).
Treeshrews have an average lifespan of 2 to 3 years in the wild, whereas in captivity, the oldest individuals have survived up to 12 years.
The females go through a gestation period of about 45 to 50 days, during which they build nests lined with dry leaves in tree hollows. They can give birth to as many as three offspring at a time.
The young are born hairless and blind and are ready to leave their nests in about a month. The mother barely provides care except for suckling them for a few minutes every other day.
They breed almost throughout the year and typically attain sexual maturity in about four months from birth.
Treeshrews have the highest brain-to-mass ratio among all mammals.
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