Insectivores (Insectivora) are one of the seven orders (groups) of mammals that live here or occur in our country. These are small to medium-sized mammals with a well-developed sense of smell and touch, while vision is of secondary importance, so they do not rely on this sense. Among insectivores, they are classified by zoologists due to their distinctive dentition. Most insectivores are predators that feed on invertebrates, some among them being omnivores. They inhabit very diverse habitats – we find them both in tropical rainforests as well as in deserts, in the tundra or taiga. They are absent from most of South America, in Australia, Greenland and Antarctica.
In terms of the number of species, insectivores rank among the most speciose groups of mammals, as there are about 430 known species in seven families worldwide. In Slovenia there are 11 species in three families (hedgehogs – Erinaceidae, shrews – Soricidae and moles – Talpidae).
