Development of microsatellite markers for a soricid water shrew, Chimarrogale platycephalus, and their successful use for individual identification.

The soricid water shrew Chimarrogale platycephalus is a mammalian species endemic to the Japanese Islands. The animals inhabit the islands of Honshu and Kyushu, and are considered to be extinct in Shikoku. Information on this water shrew from Honshu and Kyushu is scarce, and C.