In the Mediterranean, it occurs in a wide range of habitats including shrubland (maquis), open habitats, forest edges with abundant ground vegetation, cultivated fields, urban areas, gardens, farms, mountainous areas and land adjacent to rivers and streams (Palomo et al. 2007). It also favours old terraces with dry stone walls. Within open habitats such as burned sites, the White-toothed Shrew tends to be more abundant, with higher population growth rates (Torre et al. 2020). The Canary Islands population is found in remnant patches of the humid laurel forests in northern Gran Canaria and also in extensively managed farmlands. This population, along with the endemic Canary Shrew (C. canariensis), has a small litter size and lower metabolism than mainland shrews, possibly in response to living in a warm and/or variable environment. In northern Europe and at higher altitudes, it is predominantly synanthropic, living in close proximity to humans, houses and gardens (Ramalhinho et al. 1999). Its gestation length is 27-30 days, and litter size typically two to six (Palomo et al. 2007). Breeding can take place between spring and autumn, during which the White-toothed Shrew forms monogamous and territorial pairs. In winter seasons, it will nest communally in mixed-sex groups (Cantoni and Vogel 1989). It primarily feeds on myriapods, isopods, arachnids, gastropods and lepidoptera larvae (Palomo et al. 2007).

The White-toothed Shrew (Crocidura russula) is found in southern and western Europe (including some Atlantic and Mediterranean islands). The population on Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands (previously considered to be a separate species, Crocidura osorio) seems to have been introduced from Spain (Vogel et al. 2003). It has also been recently introduced to southern Ireland, Great Britain and Norway where it is considered invasive (Gargan et al. 2016, Bond et al. 2022, van der Kooij and Nyfors 2023). It typically occurs from sea level to 1,200 m, but has also been found as high as 2,000 m in Mediterranean landscapes (Palomo et al. 2007).

Outside of the assessment region, it also occurs in North Africa, in Morocco and western Algeria (Aulagnier and Vogel 2013, Nicolas et al. 2014).

It receives legal protection under the Bern Convention (Appendix III), and it occurs in numerous protected areas. The Canary Islands population is protected under Spanish law.