Distribution of several insectivora and the drying trend since the Pleistocene in North China

This paper describes the changes of distribution in geography and geohistory of five genera of fossil insectivora of the Shanyangzhai fauna in China, and compares these with their modern geographical and ecological distribution. The comparison showed that since the Pleistocene, the diffusion of the common hedgehog Erinaceus, the migration of the shrew Sorex, the water shrew Neomys, and the genera Crocidura and Scaptochirus, all indicate displacement of warm-dry environments in north China.