The order Paucituberculata contains the seven surviving species of shrew opossum: small, shrew-like marsupials which are confined to the Andes mountains of South America. The order is thought to have diverged from the ancestral marsupial line very early. Traditionally they have been considered part of Ameridelphia alongside true opossums, but genetic studies indicate a closer relationship to australidelphians. As recently as 20 million years ago, at least seven genera were in South America. Today, just three genera remain. They live in inaccessible forest and grassland regions of the High Andes.

The order Paucituberculata contains the seven surviving species of shrew opossum: small, shrew-like marsupials which are confined to the Andes mountains of South America. The order is thought to have diverged from the ancestral marsupial line very early. Traditionally they have been considered part of Ameridelphia alongside true opossums, but genetic studies indicate a closer relationship to australidelphians. As recently as 20 million years ago, at least seven genera were in South America. Today, just three genera remain. They live in inaccessible forest and grassland regions of the High Andes.