The vagrant shrew (Sorex vagrans), also known as the wandering shrew, is a medium-sized North American shrew. At one time, the montane shrew and the Orizaba long-tailed shrew were considered to belong to the same species. Range and habitat This animal inhabits open and wooded areas in western Canada and the United States west of the Continental Divide. In Canada, it is found in southern British Columbia, including Vancouver Island, and as far east as extreme south-western Alberta. In the United States, it is found throughout most of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, as far south as central California, in northern and central Nevada, northern Utah, and western Montana and Wyoming. Their preferred habitat appears to be wet grassland and meadows, ranging from alpine tundra to swampland, and they are often found close to rivers or other sources of water. They are also found in open coniferous forest, but only rarely in dense woodlands. Because they often use fallen logs as cover, they prefer areas with moderate amounts of woody debris, and they may also prefer areas with more acidic soils than other local shrew species. One subspecies is found only in salt marshes. There are three recognised subspecies: Sorex vagrans halicoetes - salt marshes in central California Sorex vagrans paludivagus - central Californian coast Sorex vagrans vagrans - throughout the remainder of the range Pleistocene fossils attributed to the species have been reported from Arkansas, New Mexico, and Texas. However, such fossils can be difficult to distinguish at the species level, and may represent close relatives such as montane or Pacific shrews. Description Vagrant shrews are generally red brown in color with white or grey underparts, although coastal populations can be much darker, being almost black on the upper parts of the body. They have a long tail which is sometimes paler in color underneath, especially in juveniles. Although similar in appearance to other shrews found in the same area, it can be distinguished from the montane shrew by its smaller size and shorter tail, and by having a smaller number of friction pads on the hind feet. It can most readily be distinguished from Trowbridge's shrew by examining fine details of the shape of the skull, although the latter species also tends to have a more distinctly pale underside to the tail in adults. During winter, its fur is dark brown. The fall molt occurs between September and October,