This small-eared shrew was described from Guatemala. The original description records its specimen from cloud forest at Cerro Cucurucho.
Its dorsal fur is dark brown with silver-gray bases, while the underside is lighter brown. Its broad feet carry long, broad claws.
Some individuals harbour hymenolepid tapeworms, flat-bodied parasites. In the Cucurucho cloud-forest survey, these worms were found in this species and in another shrew of the genus Sorex, documenting associations inside the bodies of small mammals.
In January 2013, three adult females and three adult males were captured, all in small pitfall containers placed in the ground. Researchers preserved skins and skeletal material while also examining parasites.
The tapeworms were undescribed when reported. In 2019, the shrews themselves were described as a new species, and their parasite record was retained in the description.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The isolated forest surveyed in 2013 was reported as severely disturbed. The 2014 researchers emphasised identifying small-mammal distributions and critical habitats in a region facing habitat loss.