 Pygmy Mouse (Mus minutoides)
Description: The Pygmy mouse is
buff-reddish in color with striking white underparts. The tail is
short, and the ears are short as well, measuring 13mm high. This is one
of the smallest mouse species worldwide.
Size: The total
body length ranges from 8-16cm; the tail length is usually 4cm. The
pygmy mouse weighs in at a tiny 6g.
Habitat: The range
of habitat of the Pygmy mouse is extensive. It inhabits the fynbos,
savanna woodlands, grasslands and the edges of forests.
Behavior: Active at
night, the Pygmy mouse is solitary except during mating season. It digs
burrows in soft soil, inhabits areas under logs, rocks or in termites
mounds.
Diet: Seeds and
insects make up the bulk of the Pygmy mouse diet, and occasionally it
will eat some green vegetation.
Predators:
Carnivorous birds and mammals prey on the Pygmy mouse.
Reproduction: The
gestation period, as with many mice species, is short: usually 19 days
or less. Litters consist of four to eight young and are weaned by 17
days. Females become sexually mature at about 42 days.
At Wildcliff: Found
near the Talari stream while mammal trapping in June 2008.
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