At the Lake Manenguba locality in the Bamenda Highlands it appears to be limited to swamp along the shoreline and grass and shrub habitat (Hutterer 2013). In the Adamaoua Highlands it has been recorded from gallery forest-savannah mosaic (Hutterer and Jorge 1982). Crocidura manengubae may occur in relict montane forest and middle elevation tropical rainforest at Yaounde. This region contains volcanic mountains that are covered in remnant forest.

Crocidura manengubae is endemic to the western highlands of Cameroon, where it has been recorded from the Bamenda Highlands near Lake Manenguba at 1,800 m asl (Hutterer 1981), the Adamaoua Highlands at 1,300 m asl (Hutterer and Jorge 1982), and an unconfirmed report from the Yaounde Highlands (Hutterer 2013). The species may be present at additional montane localities, however surveys are needed to confirm this. Its minimum known elevation is 1,300 m asl. It is not present on Mount Oku.

There are no direct conservation measures in place for this species. There is a need to conserve areas of suitable habitat within the Cameroon highlands. The species has not been recorded from any protected areas. Additional studies are needed into the distribution, abundance, general ecology and threats to this little-known species