Is that a mouse?

You might see one of these little, fast-moving animals and think you just saw a mouse. But this little mammal isn't even related to the mouse. Mice are rodents, as are squirrels and rats. This is a shrew. Shrews are related to moles.

There are more than 300 kinds of shrews the world over. Most of them are smaller than a common house mouse. Most of them have a long skinny snout. The one I photographed here is North America's largest shrew. It is called the short-tailed shrew. It lives outdoors and won't come inside your house.

The short-tailed shrew grows quickly, lives only about two years, eats constantly and has short legs with sharp claws for digging. They make tunnels in the ground.