NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Bioko Forest Shrew
Sylvisorex isabellae Heim de Balsac, 1968
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Bioko forest shrew or Isabella's shrew (Sylvisorex isabellae) is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae found in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forest and subtropical or tropical high-elevation grassland.
Wikipedia contributors, Bioko forest shrew; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:11:48.001823+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Sylvisorex isabellae Heim de Balsac, 1968
- Name authority
- Heim de Balsac, 1968
- Common name
- Bioko Forest Shrew
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Eulipotyphla
- Family
- Soricidae
- Genus
- Sylvisorex
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderEulipotyphla Waddell, Okada & Hasegawa, 1999
- familySoricidae G. Fischer, 1814
- subfamilyCrocidurinae A. Milne-Edwards, 1872
- genusSylvisorex Thomas, 1904
- speciesSylvisorex isabellae Heim de Balsac, 1968
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Sylvisorex. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Grant's Forest ShrewSylvisorex granti Thomas, 1907 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Howell's Forest ShrewSylvisorex howelli Jenkins, 1984 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Johnston's Forest ShrewSylvisorex johnstoni (Dobson, 1888) | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Kongana Forest ShrewSylvisorex konganensis Ray & Hutterer, 1996 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Forest MuskshrewSylvisorex ollula Thomas, 1913 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Lesser Forest ShrewSylvisorex oriundus Hollister, 1916 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Volcano Forest ShrewSylvisorex vulcanorum Hutterer & Verheyen, 1985 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bamenda Forest ShrewSylvisorex silvanorum Hutterer, Riegert & Sedlacek, 2009 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cameroonian Forest ShrewSylvisorex camerunensis Heim de Balsac, 1968 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Crescent ShrewSylvisorex lunaris Thomas, 1906 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rain Forest ShrewSylvisorex pluvialis Hutterer & Schlitter, 1996 | SoricidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=633743 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:53NBP. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.