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Glite Dictionary
family Caenolestidae

family Caenolestidae

9.9
A group of small pouched mammals like shrew opossums in South America
  • noun
  • Specialized
: familia Caenolestidae
  • The family Caenolestidae includes several species of shrew-like marsupials found in Andean forests.

Examples

  • Scientists have studied the evolutionary history of the family Caenolestidae to understand marsupial dispersal in South America.

  • Did you know that the family Caenolestidae is found only in South America?

  • Few people are familiar with the unique members of the family Caenolestidae, also known as shrew opossums.

  • The family Caenolestidae includes various species of shrew opossums.

  • The family Caenolestidae is characterized by its small size and unique adaptations to life in the forests of southern South America.

  • Researchers are increasingly focused on the family Caenolestidae due to their distinctive traits and ecological importance.

  • In the family Caenolestidae, each species exhibits a fascinating blend of shrew-like features and marsupial characteristics.

Synonyms

Caenolestidae
vsfamily Caenolestidae
  • Specialized
9.9

A family of small mammals that carry their young in a pouch and look like shrews from southern South America

is the same group but adds the common name used for them

Surface Forms

family Caenolestidae singular
families Caenolestidae plural

Morphology

family + Caenolestidae

This phrase is compositionally transparent: a learner who knows 'family' (a scientific grouping) and the taxonomic name 'Caenolestidae' can infer it refers to the biological family called Caenolestidae (shrew opossums). The pattern 'family + taxon name' is a standard, cross-linguistic naming convention in biology and thus immediately understandable to learners who know the constituents.

Etymology

Family Caenolestidae gets its name from the group name Caenolestes, which may come from Greek parts Caeno- and -lestes, meaning 'new' and 'robber'. Picture a tiny 'new robber' sneaking out to catch insects at night — that image helps you remember that family Caenolestidae are small, shrew-like opossums found in South America.