Patterns of craniometric variability of six common species of shrews (Soricidae: Crocidura, Neomys, Sorex)

Abstract

The morphometric variability of the skull and the lower jaw of 6 species of shrews (Crocidura suaveolens s. l., C. leucodon, Neomys anomalus, N. fodiens, Sorex minutus, and S. araneus) from Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Austria was analyzed. The results from the PCA and the unsupervised model-based clustering showed that morphological geographic intraspecific variation was clearly expressed in Crocidura suaveolens and C. leucodon, poorly pronounced in Neomys anomalus and N. fodiens, and almost missing in Sorex minutus and S. araneus. Our data provide a morphological confirmation of the recent molecular data, which indicate a division of both Crocidura species to western and eastern lineages. The geographical location of their boundaries was discussed.