Treeshrews[1] Temporal range: Middle Eocene – Recent
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Tupaia sp. | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Grandorder: | Euarchonta |
Order: | Scandentia Wagner, 1855 |
Families | |
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Red: Tupaiidae, Blue: Ptilocercidae , Purple: both Tupaiidae and Ptilocercidae | |
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The distribution and density of treeshrew species. |
The treeshrews (also called tree shrews or banxrings[3]) are small mammals native to the tropical forests of South and Southeast Asia. They make up the entire order Scandentia, which split into two families: the Tupaiidae (19 species, "ordinary" treeshrews), and the Ptilocercidae (one species, the pen-tailed treeshrew).
Though called 'treeshrews', and despite having previously been classified in Insectivora, they are not true shrews, and not all species live in trees. They are omnivores; among other things, treeshrews eat fruit.
Treeshrews have a higher brain to body mass ratio than any other mammal, including humans,[4] but high ratios are not uncommon for animals weighing less than 1 kg (2 lb).
Among orders of mammals, treeshrews are closely related to primates, and have been used as an alternative to primates in experimental studies of myopia, psychosocial stress, and hepatitis.[5]