Tenrecs are a diverse family of 31 small mammal species found on the tropical island of Madagascar. Whilst rampant deforestation means one in five tenrecs is threatened with extinction, most conservation attention in the country is focused on larger, more charismatic species, such as lemurs. So why have most people never heard of tenrecs and what can be done to ensure their survival?

Over millions of years of isolation on Madagascar, tenrecs evolved into several species resembling mammals that fill similar ecological niches elsewhere, such as shrews, moles, hedgehogs and small otters. Others, for example the tailless tenrec, have a very peculiar appearance and are quite unlike any other kind of animal. All tenrecs exhibit unusual and distinctive traits, such as low and variable body temperatures and exceptionally long gestation periods (two to three times longer than similar sized shrews).

However, this unique family of mammals is under threat. In the last 50 years, 40% of Madagascar’s forests have been lost in an attempt to meet the resource demands of a growing human population. While conservation agencies and TV crews often report the plight of the island’s primates, few mention tenrecs. The tendency to ignore small mammals is common, with far more scientific and conservation interest focused on larger species. This is also reflected in the literature, with the number of publications on lemurs far outnumbering those on tenrecs.

Media attention and public conservation campaigns tend to focus large, charismatic mammals such as the red-bellied lemur (left), rather than on small, inconspicuous mammals like the aquatic tenrec (right). However, both species are at risk from forest loss in Madagascar and both are categorized as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

Aware of these issues, a group of small mammal biologists and conservationists (many from the IUCN SSC Afrotheria Specialist Group) came together in Madagascar to review the tenrec species’ status and threats and to update the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The team produced the first compilation of tenrec conservation needs in almost three decades. The review concluded that tenrec habitats are lost primarily to slash and burn agriculture, as well as commercial crops, logging, mining and climate change. Large, spiny species are killed for meat, especially tailless tenrecs, while aquatic tenrecs are sometimes accidentally drowned in fish traps. The Specialist Group still lacks the information necessary to fully assess the extent of the threats facing these species but agreed that tenrecs can only be saved if sufficiently large areas of their habitats are protected and more effort is made to fill knowledge gaps.

For conservation actions to be successful, it is necessary to reconcile conservation priorities with human needs. Madagascar is one of the ten poorest countries globally and many of its inhabitants rely directly on their natural surroundings for their livelihoods. Forests are important for people as well as wildlife, providing ecosystem services and natural resources that are vital for sustainable development. Therefore, initial successes with community-based sustainable forest management and restoration schemes need to be scaled up.

Projects are also needed to develop alternatives to forest resources such as timber, fuelwood and wild meat, so that the livelihood needs of local people can be met whilst reducing the impact on threatened species.

Protected areas remain crucially important, and an extensive network of parks and reserves has been established by the Malagasy government with the help of local and international NGOs. Much of the NGO interest is focused on lemurs, yet in many parks harbouring lemurs it would be relatively easy to expand species monitoring and conservation efforts to also include tenrecs.

If the government of Madagascar and its NGO partners are able to manage the country’s remaining forests to meet the needs of local people as well as biodiversity, and if more effort is made to monitor both small and large mammals in protected areas, we should be able to ensure the continued survival of tenrecs. Perhaps, in the process, more people will be able to find out how remarkable these small mammals really are!

If you would like to read more about this study, the paper ‘Review of the status and conservation of tenrecs (Mammalia: Afrotheria: Tenrecidae)’ is now freely available until May 31 in Oryx—The International Journal of Conservation.

Photo credits: (All) PJ Stephenson.