Five new species of soft-furred hedgehogs have been identified

The hedgehog family tree is ending 2023 by getting a few more branches. A study published December 21 in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society identified five new species of soft-furred hedgehogs native to Southeast Asia that were found with the help of some DNA analysis and some decades-old museum specimens. Soft-furred hedgehogs–or gymnures–are tiny mammals that are members of the hedgehog family. Instead of being covered in spines like other hedgehogs, they have soft fur. Hedgehogs are not rodents and they have a pointy snout like their relatives. Previously, scientists believed that there were only two species, but this new study increased that number to seven.