The greater hedgehog tenrec is a small mammal from Madagascar with short spines on its back. It is active at night and searches for invertebrates on the ground and in trees.
Short, fine spines cover its back, while hair covers the face, legs and underside. It has a short tail and small eyes.
A multi-year study of small mammals across forests, farms and villages in northeastern Madagascar included the greater hedgehog tenrec. Researchers tested 2,032 captured terrestrial mammals for pathogenic Leptospira bacteria. Of 54 greater hedgehog tenrecs tested, three were positive, a prevalence of 5.5%.
The study compared animal species and bacterial lineages across different land uses. One Leptospira lineage found in rodents was also detected in a greater hedgehog tenrec captured in a flooded rice field. Recording which small mammals carry particular lineages in each habitat provides information about wildlife and environmental health in a changing landscape.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
In northeastern Madagascar, three of 54 tested greater hedgehog tenrecs carried Leptospira. A lineage also detected in rodents was found in one tenrec captured in a flooded rice field.