---
title: "Black-and-rufous Sengi"
description: "Rhynchocyon petersi — Mammals. The black and rufous sengi or black and rufous elephant shrew (Rhynchocyon petersi), also known as the Zanj sengi or Zanj elephant shrew, is one of the 17 species of sengi found only in Africa."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/black-and-rufous-sengi
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Black-and-rufous Sengi

> Rhynchocyon petersi — Mammals. The black and rufous sengi or black and rufous elephant shrew (Rhynchocyon petersi), also known as the Zanj sengi or Zanj elephant shrew, is one of the 17 species of sengi found only in Africa.

- Scientific name: *Rhynchocyon petersi*
- Category: `mammals` (Mammals)
- Habitats: `forest` (Forest)
- iNaturalist observations: 333
- Wikidata: [Q1422628](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1422628)
- iNaturalist taxon: [43224](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/43224)

## Names

- en: Black-and-rufous Sengi
- de: Rotschulter-Rüsselhündchen
- es: Sengi Gigante de Rabadilla Negra
- fr: Macroscélide de Peters
- nl: Steppeslurfhondje
- pl: Sorkonos czarno-rdzawy

## Countries with the most observations

KE (138), TZ (126)

## Summary

The black and rufous sengi or black and rufous elephant shrew (Rhynchocyon petersi), also known as the Zanj sengi or Zanj elephant shrew, is one of the 17 species of sengi found only in Africa. It is native to the lowland montane and dense forests of Kenya and Tanzania. Like other members of the genus Rhynchocyon, it is a relatively large species, with adults averaging about 28 cm (11 in) in length and 450–700 g (16–25 oz) in weight.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_and_rufous_sengi

## Photo

![Black-and-rufous Sengi](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/black-and-rufous-sengi/medium.jpg)

Photo: Dimitri Brosens · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/387210176

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/black-and-rufous-sengi?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).