' Bizarre ' new mammal discovered By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter , BBC News The curious - looking creature was caught on camera A new species of mammal has been discovered in the mountains of Tanzania , scientists report . The bizarre - looking creature , dubbed Rhynochocyon udzungwensis , is a type of giant elephant shrew , or sengi . The cat - sized animal , which is reported in the Journal of Zoology , looks like a cross between a miniature antelope and a small anteater . It has a grey face , a long , flexible snout , a bulky , amber body , a jet - black rump and it stands on spindly legs . " This is one of the most exciting discoveries of my career , " said Galen Rathbun , from the California Academy of Sciences , who helped to confirm the animal was new to science along with an international team of colleagues . They are so bizarre - looking and a lot of their behavioural ecology is so unique and interesting , you kind of get wrapped up with them Galen RathbunDespite its name , the creature , along with the 15 other known species of elephant shrew , is not actually related to shrews . Dr Rathbun told the BBC News website : " Elephant shrews are only found in Africa . They were originally described as shrews because they superficially resembled shrews in Europe and in America . " In fact , the creature is more closely related to a group of African mammals , which includes elephants , sea cows , aardvarks and hyraxes , having shared a common ancestor with them about 100 million years ago . " This is why they are also known as sengis , " explained Dr Rathbun . The new species was first caught on film in 2005 in Ndundulu Forest in Tanzania ' s Udzungwa Mountains by a camera trap set by Francesco Rovero , from the Trento Museum of Natural Sciences in Italy . Dr Rathbun said : " I got these images , and said to myself : ' Boy , these look strange '. But you can ' t describe something new based just on photographs , so in March 2006 , we went back in and collected some specimens . " Flashy creatures He told the BBC that it quickly became apparent that the creatures were new to science . He said : " Elephant shrews are almost all distinguished by distinctive colour patterns , and this is especially true of the forest - dwelling giant sengis . The animal uses its long snout for scooping up insects " They are all quite flashy - one species has a bright golden rump , another checkers along the rump - so when you have a colour pattern that just isn ' t similar to what is out there , you know it is fairly obvious that you have got something new . " And this one , with its grey face and black rump , was pretty different . " As well as its distinctive colouring , the new species is also larger than other species of giant elephant shrew , weighing 700 g ( 25 oz ) and measuring about 30 cm ( 12 in ) in length . It uses its long , flexible nose and tongue to flick up insects , such as termites , and it is most active in daylight . Dr Rathbun added : " They are behaviourally fairly simple - they are not like a dog or cat you can interact with - but they are so bizarre - looking and a lot of their behavioural ecology is so unique and interesting , you kind of get wrapped up with them . " The scientists say there is still much to learn about the Rhynochocyon udzungwensis , but they hope further research will help to answer questions about how many of the animals exist , their range and how closely the animals live together . Tanzania ' s Udzungwa Mountains are biodiverse - rich . In addition to this new species , a number of other new animals have been found there , including the Udzungwa partridge , the Phillips ' Congo shrew , and a new genus of monkey known as Kipunji as well as several reptiles and amphibians . Dr Rathbun said it was vital the area and its inhabitants in this biodiversity " hotspot " were protected .