Posted by Lisbeth Coiman on February 5, 2006

Q: I was reading in my kitchen, and saw what look like a velvety black mouse without a tail. I tried to catch it, unsuccessfully. On a closer look, it did have a tiny tail, but it moved so fast I couldn't see anything else, like eyes or ears. It was no longer than four inches, and the tail probably smaller than an inch. I am aware of mole activity in my yard, though never really saw one. Looking in the internet, this thing was not gray. It was velvety black.

Habitat: suburban/yard

State: Oklahoma

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: Making an identification of a small, rodent-like mammal can be extremely difficult if you don't get a good long look. From your description, it sounds as though you saw a shrew. I looked up shrews in my mammal guide and see that there aren't many species found in Oklahoma. There are two species, the Least Shrew and the Desert Shrew, that live in western OK, but they're aren't especially dark in color. I'm quite sure it wasn't a mole as their front legs (huge, paddle-like front paws) are a real giveaway. Voles also have short tails but tend to be on the pale brown side. If this was a shrew, you needn't worry about it gnawing on things in your house. These little guys are not rodents and feed mostly on invertebrates and sometimes on seeds. Shrews are quite interesting and most people never see them even though they're especially active all year long. Try googling shrews and see if these look similar to your "visitor". Thanks for asking.

John Wiessinger ( February 5, 2006)