Talpidae is one of the four families of small mammals in the order Eulipotyphla. A member of this family is called a talpid and the family includes moles, shrew moles, and desmans. Talpids are found in North America, Europe, and Asia, primarily in forests, shrublands, grasslands, and wetlands, though some species can also be found in deserts or coastal areas. They range in size from the Chinese shrew mole, at 6 cm (2 in) plus a 5 cm (2 in) tail, to the Russian desman, at 22 cm (9 in) plus a 22 cm (9 in) tail. Talpids primarily eat earthworms, insects, and other invertebrates, but some also consume fish, mollusks, amphibians, crustaceans, plants, and fungi. No talpids have population estimates, but the Pyrenean desman and Echigo mole are categorized as endangered species, while the Russian desman is categorized as critically endangered.

The forty-five extant species of Talpidae are divided into three subfamilies: Scalopinae, containing seven mole species in five genera, Talpinae, containing thirty-three mole, shrew mole, and desman species in eleven genera, and Uropsilinae, containing four shrew mole species in a single genus. A few extinct prehistoric Talpidae species have been discovered, though due to ongoing research and discoveries the exact number and categorization is not fixed.^[1]

Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the talpid's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted.

The family Talpidae consists of three subfamilies: Scalopinae, containing seven mole species in five genera, Talpinae, containing thirty-three mole, shrew mole, and desman species in eleven genera, and Uropsilinae, containing four shrew mole species in a single genus.

Family Talpidae

• Subfamily Scalopinae
  • Genus Condylura (star-nosed mole): one species
  • Genus Parascalops (hairy-tailed mole): one species
  • Genus Scalopus (eastern mole): one species
  • Genus Scapanulus (Gansu mole): one species
  • Genus Scapanus (western moles): three species
• Subfamily Talpinae
  • Genus Desmana (Russian desman): one species
  • Genus Dymecodon (True's shrew mole): one species
  • Genus Euroscaptor (Asiatic moles): seven species
  • Genus Galemys (Pyrenean desman): one species
  • Genus Mogera (East Asian moles): seven species
  • Genus Neurotrichus (American shrew mole): one species
  • Genus Parascaptor (white-tailed mole): one species
  • Genus Scaptochirus (short-faced mole): one species
  • Genus Scaptonyx (long-tailed mole): one species
  • Genus Talpa (European moles): eleven species
  • Genus Urotrichus (Japanese shrew mole): one species
• Subfamily Uropsilinae
  • Genus Uropsilus (shrew-like moles): four species

The following classification is based on the taxonomy described by the reference work Mammal Species of the World (2005), with augmentation by generally accepted proposals made since using molecular phylogenetic analysis, as supported by both the IUCN and the American Society of Mammalogists.^[3]