Minnesota mammals

American pygmy shrew in Minnesota

Sorex hoyi

Not specifically listed under Minnesota's state-level conservation framework. Globally listed by the IUCN as Least Concern.

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 Minnesota, by the numbers

Rare in Minnesota 61st most recorded of 88 mammals logged in Minnesota

64 occurrence records
1 with iNaturalist photos
Dec 20, 2020 Last seen in Minnesota

Records from 2000–2026.

When to look for the American pygmy shrew in Minnesota

Most sightings fall in August.

64 Minnesota occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Minnesota records (table)
MonthRecords
January1
February1
March3
April1
May2
June2
July13
August22
September11
October5
November1
December2

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

Seasonality

Year-round in Minnesota, with recorded sightings peaking in August.

Occurrence map

Where American pygmy shrew has been recorded in Minnesota

64 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

64 Minnesota records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Voyageurs National Park 6
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness 2
Bowstring State Forest 2
Flinks Slough State Wildlife Management 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 Minnesota

CountyRecords
Sherburne County 8
Cook County 7
St. Louis County 6
Lake County 5
Isanti County 5
Koochiching County 4
Norman County 3
Cass County 3
Hubbard County 3
Lac qui Parle County 2
Itasca County 2
Wadena County 2
13 other counties 14

The complete county distribution, spread across 25 Minnesota counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Many Minnesota reports have been submitted for this species. Places with suitable-looking land include Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge, Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge, Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge, but report volume reflects where people looked and doesn’t measure population size.

Sparse observation record in Minnesota; presence confirmed but timing of activity not well documented.

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 Minnesota 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
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation 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"