LOWLAND STREAKED TENREC

Characteristics

The lowland streaked tenrec is about the size of a hamster, colored black and yellow like a bumblebee, covered in spines like a hedgehog, and boasting a long, pointed snout. To top it all off, it has a bright yellow crown of long spikes on its head and neck. When threatened, it raises these quills to look imposing. If a predator continues to advance, they may jump at and try to stab the opponent with their quills, accompanied with violent bucking of their head!

Foods and Feeding

Streaked tenrec families forage in the forest using their long, sensitive snouts to find soft-bodied invertebrates such as earthworms and beetle larvae. Sometimes a tenrec may stamp its forefeet on the ground, an adaptation thought to increase earthworm activity for easier foraging. Tenrecs have very fragile jawbones and can only eat soft food. If they tried to eat anything harder, it could damage or even break their jaws. 

Behavior

Lowland streaked tenrecs are diurnal small mammals that live on the forest floor, where they spend their day foraging for food among the leaf litter. This is the only sociable tenrec species, gathering in family units consisting of up to 20 animals. Members of a group dig burrows, which are connected to each other, forming a complex burrow system. During the winter months (May-October) they conserve heat by reducing their body temperature to that of the ambient temperature around them, but they still remain active. However, when it gets too cold, tenrecs usually head into their underground burrows, and they may also have periods of torpor.

Sometimes streaked tenrec families get separated in the forest and need to communicate with each other. A streaked tenrec has special spines on its back that it can rub together to produce high-pitched squeaks and chirps, like a violinist running a bow across a violin string. This process is called stridulation. Crickets and other insects commonly use stridulation to communicate, but streaked tenrecs are the only mammals that are known to do it.

Humans cannot hear streaked tenrec stridulation because it happens at sound frequencies that are too high for our ears to pick up. Scientists need a special ultrasound microphone to catch the sounds of tenrec stridulation. Interestingly, they have noticed that the stridulation clicks get louder the higher a streaked tenrec raises the crown of spikes on its head.

Reproduction and Life Cycle

Lowland tenrecs mate from September to December. During the mating season, males compete with each other, engaging in fights in order to attract the attention of receptive females. Gestation lasts for 55 to 63 days, and a female can give birth to up to 11 pups, although the average is 5 to 8 per litter. Weaning occurs at 18 to 25 days old. Females of this species reach reproductive maturity as early as 25 days old—which makes them the only tenrec that can begin breeding during the same season in which they were born.

Conservation and Threats

Habitat loss and fragmentation are among the greatest threats to tenrecs’ survival. Tenrecs are mostly found in intact forests, which are dwindling in Madagascar due to widespread deforestation. Other threats to tenrecs include wildfires and the introduction of non-native animals that may prey on adults or pups. In the longer term, climate change is expected to alter tenrecs’ habitats and ranges, making them more vulnerable.