Macroscelides proboscideus

{{Short description|Species of mammal}}

{{For|the former subspecies M. p. flavicaudatus|Macroscelides flavicaudatus}}

{{Multiple issues|

{{More citations needed|date=March 2025}}

{{More footnotes needed|date=March 2025}}

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{{Speciesbox

| image = Macroscelides proboscideus 2.JPG

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn |author=Rathbun, G.B. |author2=Smit-Robinson, H. |date=2015 |title=Macroscelides proboscideus |volume=2015 |page=e.T45369602A45435551 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T45369602A45435551.en |access-date=11 November 2021}}

| genus = Macroscelides

| species = proboscideus

| authority = (Shaw, 1800)

| synonyms =

| range_map = Macroscelides proboscideus distribution.svg

| range_map_caption = Geographic range

}}

The round-eared elephant shrew (Macroscelides proboscideus) or round-eared sengi (called the Karoo round-eared elephant shrew to distinguish it from its sister species;{{Cite journal | last1 = Dumbacher | first1 = J. P. | last2 = Rathbun | first2 = G. B. | last3 = Smit | first3 = H. A. | last4 = Eiseb | first4 = S. J. | editor1-last = Steinke | editor1-first = Dirk | title = Phylogeny and Taxonomy of the Round-Eared Sengis or Elephant-Shrews, Genus Macroscelides (Mammalia, Afrotheria, Macroscelidea) | doi = 10.1371/journal.pone.0032410 | journal = PLOS ONE | volume = 7 | issue = 3 | pages = e32410 | year = 2012 | pmid = 22479325| pmc =3314003 | bibcode = 2012PLoSO...732410D | doi-access = free }} formerly misleadingly named the "short-eared elephant shrew"),{{cite book |last=Rathbun |first=G. H.

|year=2005 |editor1-last=Skinner |editor1-first=J. D. |editor2-last=Chimimba |editor2-first=C. T. |title=The Mammals of the Southern African Sub-region |chapter=Order Macroscelidea |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I6RhVKyFfjkC&pg=PA26 |page=26 |isbn=978-0521844185 |publisher=Cambridge University Press}}

is a species of elephant shrew (sengi) in the family Macroscelididae. It is found in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and grassland, and hot deserts. They eat insects, shoots, and roots. Their gestation period is 56 days.California Academy of Sciences. Elephant-shrews or Sengis: Macroscelidea. {{cite web |url=http://research.calacademy.org/research/bmammals/eshrews/index.html |title=Elephant-Shrews |access-date=2008-07-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723055107/http://research.calacademy.org/research/bmammals/eshrews/index.html |archive-date=2008-07-23 }}

Elephant shrews are among only a handful of monogamous mammals, making them a model group for the study of monogamy. They have been studied for their mate guarding behavior.Bernard, R. T. F., G. I. H. Kerley, T. Doubell and A. Davison 1996. Reproduction in the round-eared elephant shrew (Macroscelides proboscideus) in the southern Karoo, South Africa. Journal of Zoology, London, 240 233-243. Mate guarding is considered a predominant male trait in round-eared elephant shrews. This strategy is used to guard the female before and after heat to eliminate male competition, which makes male round-eared elephant shrews monogamous and more vulnerable to their surroundings as they spent a majority of their time dedicated to this tactic.{{Cite journal|last1=Schubert|first1=Melanie|last2=Schradin|first2=Carsten|last3=Rödel|first3=Heiko G.|last4=Pillay|first4=Neville|last5=Ribble|first5=David O.|date=2009-12-01|title=Male mate guarding in a socially monogamous mammal, the round-eared sengi: on costs and trade-offs|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-009-0842-2|journal=Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology|language=en|volume=64|issue=2|pages=257–264|doi=10.1007/s00265-009-0842-2|bibcode=2009BEcoS..64..257S |s2cid=44029280 |issn=1432-0762|url-access=subscription}}

Research was recently conducted to determine that elephant shrews are thought to have dichromatic color vision due to their ability to differentiate between blue/green colors and grey. However, there is no evidence to prove that the species can see red colors.{{Cite journal|last=Thus|first=Patricia|date=16 Sep 2020|title=Colour vision in sengis (Macroscelidea, Afrotheria, Mammalia): choice experiments indicate dichromatism|url=https://doi.org/10.1163/1568539X-bja10039|access-date=2021-12-05|journal=Behaviour|volume=157 |issue=14–15 |pages=1127–1151 |doi=10.1163/1568539x-bja10039|s2cid=224945580 |url-access=subscription}}

File:Macroscelides proboscideus (Slurfspitsmuis), RP-T-1914-17-230.jpg in 1779–1780.]]