? Western Harvest Mouse
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Rodentia Family: Cricetidae Subfamily: Neotominae Genus: Reithrodontomys Species: R. megalotis
Binomial name
Reithrodontomys megalotis (Baird, 1857)

The Western harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis) is a small neotomine mouse native to southwest British Columbia, most of the western United States extending continously to west Texas, northeast Arkansas, northwest Indiana, southwest Wisconsin, the interior of Mexico to Oaxaca. Many authorities consider the endangered Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse to be a subspecies, but the two are now usually treated separately. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1160x902, 224 KB) Summary I C. Michael Hogan took this photo and release all rights to wikipedia Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anenomes) Placozoa (trichoplax) Subregnum Bilateria (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicatas Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Subclass Multituberculata (extinct) Plagiaulacida Cimolodonta Subclass Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Subclass Triconodonta (extinct) Subclass Eutheria (includes extinct ancestors)/Placentalia (excludes extinct ancestors) Afrosoricida Artiodactyla Carnivora Cetacea Chiroptera Cimolesta (extinct) Creodonta (extinct) Condylarthra (extinct) Dermoptera Desmostylia (extinct) Embrithopoda (extinct) Hyracoidea Insectivora Lagomorpha Litopterna (extinct) Macroscelidea Mesonychia (extinct) Notoungulata (extinct) Perissodactyla Pholidota Plesiadapiformes... Families Many, see text The order Rodentia is the most numerous of all the branches on the mammal family tree. ... Subfamilies see text Cricetidae is a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. ... Tribes Baiomyini Neotomini Peromyscini The subfamily Neotominae consists of numerous species of New World rats and mice that are predominantly found in North America. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is the formal method of naming species. ... Tribes Baiomyini Neotomini Peromyscini The subfamily Neotominae consists of numerous species of New World rats and mice that are predominantly found in North America. ... Motto: Splendor Sine Occasu (Latin: Splendour without diminishment) Official languages English Capital Victoria Largest city Vancouver Lieutenant-Governor Iona Campagnolo Premier Gordon Campbell (BC Liberal) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 36 6 Area Total  â€¢ Land  â€¢ Water    (% of total)  Ranked 5th 944,735 km² 925,186 km² 19,549 km... Official language(s) None. ... Official language(s) English Capital Little Rock Largest city Little Rock Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 29th 137 732 km² 385 km 420 km 2. ... Official language(s) English Capital Indianapolis Largest city Indianapolis Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 38th 94,321 km² 225 km 435 km 1. ... Official language(s) None Capital Madison Largest city Milwaukee Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 23rd 169,790 km² 420 km 500 km 17 42°30N to 47°3N 86°49W to 92°54W Population  - Total (2000)  - Density Ranked 18th 5,453,896 38. ... The Mexican state of Oaxaca (Pronounced wa-HA-ka) is in the south west of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. ... Binomial name Reithrodontomys raviventris Dixon, 1908 The salt marsh harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys raviventris), also known as the red-bellied harvest mouse, is an endangered rodent endemic to the San Francisco Bay Area of California. ... In zoology, as in other branches of biology, subspecies is the rank immediately subordinate to a species. ...

Description and comparison with similar species

Western harvest mice have brownish fur with buff sides, a white belly, and an indistinct white stripe on the fur along the spine. Adults grow up to eleven to seventeen centimeters in length with a tail length of five to ten centimeters. Their height (from the ground to the highest point of their back) is between 1.5 and 2.0 centimeters. A mature mouse weighs anywhere from nine to twenty-two grams.

The Western harvest mouse is nocturnal, with particularly intense activity on very dark nights. This mouse is particularly resourceful, making use of the ground runways of other rodents. It is also a very agile climber. Its primary food source is seeds, but springtime dining is augmented with new plant growth. In June, July and August the mouse is known to consume certain insects, especially grasshoppers and caterpillars. Again resourceful, the Western harvest mouse stores seeds and other foodstuffs in underground vaults. Its many predators include the fox, weasel, coyote, hawk, snake and owl species. A nocturnal animal is one that sleeps during the day and is active at night - the opposite of the typical human schedule (diurnal). ... Classes & Orders Subclass:Apterygota Orders Archaeognatha (Bristletails) Thysanura (Silverfish) Monura - extinct Subclass:Pterygota Infraclass: Paleoptera (paraphyletic) Orders Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Palaeodictyoptera - extinct Megasecoptera - extinct Archodonata - extinct Diaphanopterodea - extinct Protodonata - extinct Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Infraclass: Neoptera Superorder: Exopterygota Orders Caloneroptera - extinct Titanoptera - extinct Protorthoptera - extinct Grylloblattodea (ice-crawlers) Mantophasmatodea (gladiators) Plecoptera... Families Superfamily: Proscopioidea Proscopiidae Superfamily: Eumastacoidea Eumastacidae Thericleidae Superfamily: Xyronotoidea Tanaoceridae Xyrotonotidae Superfamily: Pampagoidea Pamphagidae Superfamily: Pyrgomorphoidea Pyrgomorphidae Superfamily: Trigonopteryguidea Borneancrididae Trigonopterygidae Superfamily: Acridoidea Acrididae Cyrtacanthacridinae Romaleidae Superfamily: Tetrigoidea Batrachideidae Tetrigidae Superfamily: Tridactyloidea Tridactylidae Ripipterygidae Superfamily: Cylindrichaetoidea Cylindrichaetidea Unknown: Charilaidae Dericorythidae Euschmidtiidae Lathiceridae Lentulidae Lithidiidae Ommexechidae Pneumoridae Pyrgacrididae Tridactylidae Tristiridae... The striking caterpillar of the Emperor Gum Moth A caterpillar is the larval form of a lepidopteran (a member of the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). ... A Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) A fox is a member of any of 27 species of small omnivorous canids. ... Species Mustela africana Mustela altaica Mustela erminea Mustela eversmannii Mustela felipei Mustela frenata Mustela kathiah Mustela lutreola Mustela lutreolina Mustela nigripes Mustela nivalis Mustela nudipes Mustela putorius Mustela sibirica Mustela strigidorsa Mustela vison Weasels are mammals in the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family. ... Binomial name Canis latrans Say, 1823 The coyote (Canis latrans, meaning barking dog, also prairie wolf[1]) is a member of the Canidae (the dog family) and a relative of the domestic dog. ... The term hawk refers to birds of prey in any of three senses: Strictly, to mean any of the species in the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis, and Megatriorchis. ... Superfamilies and Families Henophidia Aniliidae Anomochilidae Boidae Bolyeriidae Cylindrophiidae Loxocemidae Pythonidae Tropidophiidae Uropeltidae Xenoplplplpeltidae Typhlopoidea Anomalepididae Leptotyphlopidae Typhlopidae Xenophidia Acrochordidae Atractaspididae Colubridae Elapidae Hydrophiidae Viperidae Snakes are cold blooded legless reptiles closely related to lizards, which share the order Squamata. ... For uses of the word Owl as a three letter acronym, see OWL. Families Strigidae Tytonidae An owl is any of some 220+ species of solitary, mainly nocturnal birds of prey in the order Strigiformes. ...

Similar species are the Plains harvest mouse, which has a more distinct but narrower stripe on its spine, and the Fulvous harvest mouse, which has a longer tail. Also similar is the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse, which has an underbelly fur that is more pinkish cinnamon to tawny. Finally, the House mouse has incisors without grooves, unlike those of the Western harvest mouse. Binomial name Reithrodontomys raviventris Dixon, 1908 The salt marsh harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys raviventris), also known as the red-bellied harvest mouse, is an endangered rodent endemic to the San Francisco Bay Area of California. ... Binomial name Mus musculus Linnaeus, 1758 Mus musculus is the common house mouse. ... Incisors are the first kind of tooth in heterodont mammals. ...

Breeding

Breeding nests are spherical constructions woven from grass or other plant material. A nest is approximately 13 centimeters in diameter and lined with a more downy material of fibrous plants. A nest may have one or more entrances near its base. Most commonly, the nest is built on the ground in a protected area such as within a shrub or beside a fallen tree; however, the mouse will occasionally place the nest aboveground within a shrub. A basket style nest A nest is place of refuge built to hold an animals eggs and/or provide a place to raise their offspring. ... A grassy swamp. ...

The western harvest mouse breeds from early spring to late autumn, with reduced activity at midsummer. The gestation period is 23 to 24 days. Repeated fertilization often occurs immediately after giving birth. It is not uncommon for a female to have ten to fourteen litters per annum, with a typical litter size of two to six individuals; however, litters of up to nine offspring can occur. Thus an annual production of forty to sixty young per female is normal. The newborn mice weigh approimately 1.0 to 1.5 grams. Categories: Biology stubs ... Birth is the process in animals by which an offspring is expelled from the body of its mother. ...

References

• Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. In Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

• National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals, ed. by John O. Whitaker Jr., Chanticleer Press (1997) ISBN 0-679-44631-1