Michigan mammals

American pygmy shrew in Michigan

Sorex hoyi

Native to Michigan SU Unrankable in Michigan

Not listed as nonindigenous in Michigan by USGS NAS; native to its Michigan range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

American pygmy shrew crossing an asphalt pathAI-generated image: American pygmy shrew foraging in damp forest leaf litter. No additional license-safe photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAI-generated image: American pygmy shrew paused on green moss. No additional license-safe photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy
Photo: Steven Joyner · CC BY 4.0American pygmy shrew crossing an asphalt pathAI-generated image No additional license-safe photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAmerican pygmy shrew foraging in damp forest leaf litterAI-generated image No additional license-safe photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAmerican pygmy shrew paused on green moss

American pygmy shrew in Michigan, by the numbers

Rare in Michigan 57th most recorded of 75 mammals logged in Michigan

13 occurrence records
5 with iNaturalist photos
Dec 27, 2022 Last seen in Michigan

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the American pygmy shrew in Michigan

Most sightings fall in June.

13 Michigan occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence. Based on a small number of dated records; the seasonal pattern may not be representative.

Monthly Michigan records (table)
MonthRecords
January0
February0
March0
April0
May0
June4
July1
August4
September0
October3
November0
December1

Monthly american pygmy shrew occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Michigan, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Michigan, with recorded sightings peaking in June, with a smaller rise in August and October.

Occurrence map

Where American pygmy shrew has been recorded in Michigan

13 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

13 Michigan records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Ottawa National Forest 1
Oden State Fish Hatchery and Visitor Center 1
Hiawatha National Forest 1
Gaylord State Forest Area 1

Protected places with the most american pygmy shrew sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Michigan

CountyRecords
Alger County 4
Kalkaska County 4
Mackinac County 2
Gogebic County 1
Emmet County 1
Otsego County 1

The complete county distribution, spread across 6 Michigan counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

American pygmy shrew, among the smallest mammals in North America at under a nickel’s weight, has just 13 Michigan records since 2000, 5 of them iNaturalist sightings and the rest likely trapping or specimen data rather than sightings of a shrew too tiny and fast to spot by eye. Alger and Kalkaska counties hold 4 records each, and no named site has more than one.

NatureServe ranks the species SU, Unrankable, in Michigan, a status reserved for species too poorly surveyed to assign a confident conservation grade, not evidence of decline. The few dated reports fall mostly in June, August, and October, a pattern shaped almost entirely by when small-mammal trapping projects happen to run.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

American pygmy shrew crossing an asphalt path
Full species profile American pygmy shrew Sorex hoyi Size 5–7 cm2–2.8 in Weight 2–5 g0.1–0.2 oz View the full profile

More mammals in Michigan in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"