Tupaia palawanensis on a rock

Morphological Description

The Palawan Tree Shrew is one of the unfamiliar and uncommon mammals of Palawan Island, Philippines. Commonly called “bising” in the vernacular, this animal can grow to almost 2 feet long, the tail accounting for about a third of the body. It has an elongated snout, proportionately small ears relative to the head, and a hairy tail. The head is predominantly black with a spot immediately behind the ear.

Habitat and Biology

The Palawan tree shrew usually inhabit dense secondary forests bounding cleared areas like those prepared for slash-and-burn farming. They are also observed in thick stands of bamboo growing along streams. They are generally arboreal, meaning inhabiting or frequenting trees to look for food and avoid predators.

A very shy, easily disturbed animal, the Palawan tree shrew avoids its own kind and would defend actively its territory. For this reason it must eat all the time as it burns up so much energy fighting and looking for food. Their long snouts make them efficient insectivores, but they would also thrive on fruits.

Distribution

These mammals are known only in the Palawan group of islands, i.e., in Palawan mainland and nearby small islands of Cuyo in the east, and Culion and Busuanga in the north of mainland Palawan.

Status

As this animal is endemic and uncommon in Palawan, the remaining population is threatened primarily because humans also hunt it for food aside from destroying its habitat.