Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 29, 2026

White-tailed mole

The white-tailed mole is a species of mammal in the family Talpidae. It is found in Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar. This species are endemic to East Asia and exhibit limited distributions. It is the only species in the genus Parascaptor.

Last revised
Jun 29, 2026
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White-tailed mole1
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Placentalia
Order: Eulipotyphla
Family: Talpidae
Genus: Parascaptor
Gill, 1875
Species:
P. leucura
Binomial name
Parascaptor leucura
(Blyth, 1850)
White-tailed mole range

The white-tailed mole (Parascaptor leucura) is a species of mammal in the family Talpidae. It is found in Bangladesh,2 China, India, and Myanmar. This species are endemic to East Asia and exhibit limited distributions.3 It is the only species in the genus Parascaptor.

It has a looser articulation between the malleus and the ectotympanic bone and a reduced or absent orbicular apophysis. Parascaptor has a hypertrophied malleus, a feature shared with Scaptochirus but not found in any other talpid genera. It lacks a tensor tympani muscle, possess complete bullae, and has extensions of the middle ear cavity that pneumatize the surrounding basicranial bones.4

References

References

  1. Hutterer, R. (2005). Wilson, D.E.; Reeder, D.M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. Molur, S. (2016). "Parascaptor leucura". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016 e.T41470A22322993. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T41470A22322993.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  3. He, K; Shinohara, A; Jiang, X. L.; Campbel, K. L. (2014). "Multilocus phylogeny of talpine moles (Talpini, Talpidae, Eulipotyphla) and its implications for systematics". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 70: 513–521. Bibcode:2014MolPE..70..513H. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.10.002. PMID 24140029.
  4. Mason, M. J. (2006). "Evolution of the middle ear apparatus in talpid moles". Journal of Morphology. 267 (6): 678–695. doi:10.1002/jmor.10430. PMC 7166676. PMID 16511863.