A Record of Sorex merriami from Northeastern Colorado

The shrew Sorex merriami is so uncommon in the eastern part of its range that the capture of a specimen from northeastern Colorado is of especial interest. On October 15, 1953, Richard G. Van Gelder obtained an adult Sorex merriami at Owl Canyon, Larimer County, Colorado (specimen no. 7661, Univ. Illinois). It was taken on an east-sloping hogback, which is covered with piñon, juniper, mountain mahogany, yucca, and grasses. Piñons predominate and form an isolated island of pinon-juniper far north of any similar habitat. Although mammals have been trapped for many years on this area, no shrews have previously been taken. Captured with the shrew were Peromyscus maniculatus and Peromyscus nasutus. Owl Canyon is not far from the locality near Laramie in southeastern Wyoming where another specimen of this shrew has been taken (Mickey and Steele, Jour. Mamm., 28: 294, 1947). The specimen from Wyoming has been referred to S. m. merriami. The one from northeastern Colorado is quite similar to four specimens of S. m. leucogenys from Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, and differs from these (and approaches S. m. merriami) only in being slightly shorter in length than the average of the four and in having a narrower cranium. On a geographical basis, one would not expect the specimen from Owl Canyon to be referable to S. m. leucogenys, although the flora of the region is reportedly more similar to that of southern Colorado than that of Wyoming. Until additional specimens of S. merriami from northeastern Colorado are available, the subspecific determination is questionable.