New Super Strong Species of Hero Shrew Discovered in Africa

A new species of Hero Shrew has been discovered in Africa. Only weighing about two ounces, you'd think that this mammal wouldn't be all that strong--but you might be surprised. With one of the most bizarre lower spines on Earth, this mammal is known for having a bone structure that's one of the strongest relative to its body mass.

Named Scutisorex thori, the new shrew's strength lies in how its spine is formed. The interlocking vertebrae that form the structure are four to five times more robust relative to its body mass. This interlocking arrangement of its vertebrae, along with its surrounding musculature, makes the Hero Shrew the Hercules of rodents.

The first Hero Shrew was discovered in 1910. But it wasn't until much later that researchers realized exactly how unusual this creature was.  And until now, researchers hadn't discovered any other species of this bizarre shrew.

"This shrew first came to light when explorers came to the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo," said Bill Stanley, Director of Collections and zoologist at the Field Museum, in a news release. "The explorers watched in amazement as a full-grown man stood on the back of the Hero Shrew, and the animal walked away, unharmed."

While most mammals have five lumbar vertebrae, the Hero Shrew has at least ten. This, in particular, gives it the strength it needs to withstand enormous pressures. Scutisorex thori doesn't have quite as many vertebrae as its cousin, though; it only has eight, and fewer lateral processes than the original species.

So why have this super strong spine? Scientists believe that these shrews position themselves between the trunk and leaf bases of palms. They then use their spine to exert force and gain access to concentrated sources of beetle larvae that are otherwise protected from predation. They also could use their spines to lift logs or rocks to access invertebrates--a food resource that remains unavailable to many other mammals.

"The Age of Discovery is not over," said Stanley. "In fact, discoveries such as these happen in natural history collections, like the one we have at The Field Museum. In addition, hypotheses such as the one that we've generated concerning the functional significance of the Hero Shrew's spine fuel the scientific machine. We can't wait to see the results of further studies that test the ideas presented in this article."

The findings are published in the journal Biology Letters.