The members of the genus Nesophontes, sometimes called West Indies shrews, were members of the extinct family of mammals Nesophontidae in the order Soricomorpha. This is the only genus described for this family. They were endemic to Cuba, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti), Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and the Cayman Islands. Although reliable estimates are unavailable, these animals are widely believed to have survived the Pleistocene extinction since remains have been found among those of Rattus and Mus species. Some authorities estimate extinction coinciding with the arrivals of rats (Rattus) aboard Spanish vessels in the early 16th century (1500). Others, such as Morgan and Woods, claim that some species survived until the early 20th century. Their relations to the other West Indian soricomorphs, the solenodons, remain unclear.