---
title: "Poolspitsmuis"
description: "Sorex arcticus — Zoogdieren. The Arctic shrew (Sorex arcticus), also known as the blackback shrew or saddlebacked shrew, is a medium-sized shrew found in Canada and the northern United States."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/arctic-shrew
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Poolspitsmuis

> Sorex arcticus — Zoogdieren. The Arctic shrew (Sorex arcticus), also known as the blackback shrew or saddlebacked shrew, is a medium-sized shrew found in Canada and the northern United States.

- Scientific name: *Sorex arcticus*
- Category: `mammals` (Zoogdieren)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 50
- Wikidata: [Q1763695](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1763695)
- iNaturalist taxon: [46430](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/46430)

## Names

- en: Arctic Shrew
- de: Arktische Spitzmaus
- es: Musaraña árctica
- fr: Musaraigne arctique
- nl: Poolspitsmuis

## Countries with the most observations

CA (32)

## Summary

The Arctic shrew (Sorex arcticus), also known as the blackback shrew or saddlebacked shrew, is a medium-sized shrew found in Canada and the northern United States. Separate species status has been proposed for the maritime shrew (Sorex maritimensis) which is found in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and had been considered to be a subspecies of the Arctic shrew. The tundra shrew (Sorex tundrensis) was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Arctic shrew.

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

## Photo

![Poolspitsmuis](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/arctic-shrew/medium.jpg)

Photo: Allan Harris · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/18390941

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/arctic-shrew?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).