About Mesechinus orientalis:
- It is a new species of Hedgehog.
- It is currently known from southern Anhui and northwestern Zhejiang, both in eastern China.
- It is currently the southeasternmost species of Mesechinus (Mesechinus is a small genus of mammals in the hedgehog family).
- Habitat: It can be found in scrubland and subtropical broad-leaf evergreen forests at elevations from 30 to 700 m.
- Features:
- It is a small-bodied hedgehog.
- It has the shortest spines in the genus (1.8-2 cm).
- There are four colour rings on the spine, from the base to the tip.
- The nose is brown, with black whiskers on the snout; these whiskers shorten towards the nose.
- The ears are small and nearly the same length as the surrounding spines.
- It appears to be sexually dimorphic. The pelage of males is generally gray, while that of most of the females is reddish brown.
Key Facts about Hedgehog:
- Hedgehogs are a distinctive group of spiney insectivorous mammals comprising the subfamily Erinaceinae of the Erinaceidae family.
- They are found across Eurasia and Africa but absent from Australia and the Americas.
- Their most notable features are their spines, which are enlarged hollow hairs, and ability to roll into a ball when frightened, presenting only these spines to the outside world.
