|
| Distribution |
In NC, spottily occurring in the mountains, south to Clay County. Relatively few records for most counties where recorded, and perhaps absent in a few mountain counties. There is a 2008 report of two nests seen in Polk County, along the edge of the mountains; this county has not been mapped, as the editors feel uncertain whether this is definitive evidence for such a county record.
Coast to coast, from AK to Labrador, and south to the mountainous areas are the lower 48 states. In the East, it occurs mainly in the mountains, south in the Appalachians. |
| Abundance |
Rare, at least in the southern counties, and perhaps very rare in the northern mountains. The species probably deserves official State listing as Special Concern, but at least the N.C. Natural Heritage Program tracks it as Significantly Rare. Though that program has its State Rank as S3, it likely should be moved to a rarer S2 or S2S3. |
| Seasonal Occurrence |
Active year-round, but probably few trapping efforts have been made in winter to determine how active it is at that season. |
| Habitat |
As the name implies, it occurs very close to water, in this case running water of small streams and creeks, in cool forests. Areas with rhododendron and/or Mountain Laurel, in cove forests, are preferred.
See also Habitat Account for Montane Mesic Forests with Seepages/Headwater Streams |
| Behavior |
This species feeds in the streams as well as along the edges, but it does enter the water, most unusual for a small mammal. |
| Comments |
This is a difficult mammal to trap, such as in pitfall traps, as its habitat does not lend well to that type of collecting. Therefore, details of its range and abundance are slow in coming. |
| Origin |
Native |
| NC List |
Official |
 State Rank |
S3 [S2S3] |
| State Status |
SR |
| Global Rank |
G5 |
| Federal Status |
|
| subspecies |
Sorex palustris punctulatus |
| other_comName |
Water Shrew |
| synonym |
|
