The northern tree shrew has grey-olive fur and a long snout and lives in moist forests across South and Southeast Asia.
Its fur is greyish olive, and it has an elongated, pointed snout.
In Tripura in northeastern India, three adult Northern Tree Shrews were seen feeding on the forest floor beside a seasonal stream on the morning of 15 March 2012. The site, in the Atharamura Hills, was at 322 metres in tropical moist deciduous forest with trees, bamboo and streams in its valleys. The observation was the first published record of the species from Dhalai District.
During a ten-hour observation, the shrews spent much of their time digging insects from leaf litter and soil. They also moved along branches to eat fruit, seeds and insects, then rested for one to two hours in nests in the upper branches after noon. Their feeding observations included insects found on the ground as well as fruit, seeds and insects taken in trees.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The Tripura field note lists forest encroachment for timber and fuelwood, land changes for roads and railways, and conversion to rubber plantations as pressures on Northern Tree Shrew habitat. The observed site was moist deciduous forest with trees, bamboo and streams, where the shrews fed on insects on the ground and fruit and seeds in trees.