Karoo round-eared sengi

For the former subspecies M. p. flavicaudatus, see Macroscelides flavicaudatus.

Karoo round-eared sengi
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Macroscelidea
Family:	Macroscelididae
Genus:	Macroscelides
Species:	M. proboscideus
Binomial name
Macroscelides proboscideus (Shaw, 1800)
Geographic range

The round-eared sengi or round-eared elephant shrew (Macroscelides proboscideus), also called the Karoo round-eared sengi or Karoo round-eared sengi to distinguish it from its sister species), is a species of small mammal belonging to the sengi 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. The species was formerly misleadingly called the short-eared sengi or short-eared elephant shrew.

Sengis 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. Mate guarding is considered a predominant male trait in round-eared sengis. This strategy is used to guard the female before and after heat to eliminate male competition, which makes male round-eared sengis monogamous and more vulnerable to their surroundings as they spent a majority of their time dedicated to this tactic.

Research was recently conducted to determine that sengis 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.

Round-eared sengi (Macroscelides proboscideus), as described by Robert Jacob Gordon in 1779–1780

Round-eared sengi (Macroscelides proboscideus) at Frankfurt Zoo