Tenrec (Centetes), a genus of Insectivora, represented by one species (C. ecaudatus), which is restricted to Madagascar, Bourbon, and Mauritius. It is the largest known insectivore, measuring from 12 to 16 inches in length; and it is probably the most prolific of mammals, since as many as twenty-one young are said to have been brought forth at a birth. The body is squat; there is hardly any tail; the adult males have long canines; the young have strong white spines in lines along the back, but these are afterwards lost.
It feeds chiefly on earthworms, and is said to become dormant during the hottest part of the year.