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A furry mammal with a luggage compartment - like nozzle was catch scurry about in a remote African woods . This elephant shrewmouse , a big one , is probable a new species .
Conservationists study the biodiversity of the Boni - Dodori forest on the coast of northeastern Kenya had set up camera traps there after a scientist had spotted an elephant shrew ( also called a sengi ) she did n’t recognize .
Giant elephant-shrew captured on camera in the forests of Kenya.
From the simulacrum of the young mintage , research worker now know the animate being has maroon colour on its sides , shoulder and back , and a downhearted rump that ’s blue jet - ignominious . It ’s relatively bombastic for an elephant shrew , weighing in at 1.3 hammer ( 600 grams ) with a total distance of 22 inch ( 550 millimeters ) , and a nates length of about 10 column inch ( 250 mm ) .
The squad , which include the Zoological Society of London ( ZSL ) and the Kenya Wildlife Service ( KWS ) , will next analyze the animal ’s DNA to confirm whether or not it is indeed a Modern species of elephant shrewmouse .
If it is a newfangled metal money , that would make 18 species of sengi in the family Macroscelididae ( 13 species of soft - furry sengi and five species of the giant sengi ) . All are native to Africa . The fauna are more closely related toelephantsthan shrews , despite being relativelysmall creature – ramble from 4 to 12 inch ( 10 to 30 centimetre ) in length and weighing from less than a tenth of a pound to 1.5 pounds ( 30 to 700 grams ) .
The rummy name is a reflection of their foresightful , flexible , automobile trunk - like nose , which they use to search for insect repast . The new captured creature is a type of jumbo sengi , which have model pelage and other decided feature from the smaller sengis .
" With their ancient and often misunderstood ancestry , their monogamous mating strategies , and their charismatic compromising snouts , they are captivating animals , " survey researcher Galen Rathbun from the California Academy of Sciences said in a affirmation .
In 2008 , Rathbun announcedanother new coinage of giant sengicaught in the forests of Tanzania . Its weight yield this beast away : " From the moment I first lift one of the animate being into our picture taking collapsible shelter , I knew it must be a new species — not just because of its distinct food colouring , but because it was so heavy , " Rathbun said in 2008 of that discovery .
