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Western harvest mouse - REITHRODONTOMYS MEGALOTIS
Possibly Endangered
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Mouse": "Mouse" comes from the Old English word
"mus," for the animal.
Location: Western United States and Mexico.
Habitat: Prairies and deserts.
Description: The color of the coat varies somewhat, ranging from pale gray to brown. In appearance, the harvest mouse somewhat resembles the house mouse. It has 16 teeth. Length of head and body about 2.8 inches, tail is 3.2 inches, and the mouse weighs about half an ounce.
Behavior: It feeds on seeds, grass, and occasionally insects, and is most active at night. It does not hibernate. It builds distinctive spherical nests of grass, on the ground in thickets of tall vegetation, in fallen logs, and in abandoned woodpecker nests.
Reproduction: The female has six nipples. There is no specific period when mating occurs. Gestation lasts for about 24 days, then the female gives birth to 2 to 4 young, which are blind and hairless. At 8 weeks the young are fully developed, and the young females are capable of reproducing at 3 to 4 months of age.
Go to the Rodents Page to learn more about all the gnawing animals.
Or go to the Mouse Index to study other
mice.
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