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Rice-field Mouse
Also called: Marsh Mouse, Rice Rat.
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- Length
- 9.40 inches.
- Description
- Similar in general external appearance to a young Norway rat. Dull brownish above thickly mixed with black hairs. Tail obscurely bicoloured, scantily haired, so that the scales are visible. The best external characters distinguishing this animal from the young of the common Norway rat are the longer tail and browner colouration as well as the white fringe of hairs on the lower part of the ear and the glossy brown hairs inside. A young rat has narrow white front (incisor) teeth instead of the orange ones and the tubercles on the molars form three rows instead of two.
- Range
- Southern New Jersey to the Gulf States, chiefly in the coast marshes, represented in Florida by slightly different geographic varieties.
- Range
- Florida as far south as Micco and Citrus County.
- Range
- Southern tropical Florida south of Micco.
The rice-field mouse is an abundant inhabitant of the banks of rice fields through our Southern states; though Mr. Bangs states that it is by no means confined to such places, as it occurs in dry old fields, heavy swamps, hummocks and sometimes even on sandhills.
Those which frequent the dry land burrow in the banks and construct subterranean nests after the manner of the cotton rat, but the marsh residents build their nest in the tall rank grass above the reach of high water. In the northern part of their range, in southern New Jersey, they frequent muskrat houses.
The rice-field mouse is decidedly aquatic in habits and is a good swimmer.
Varieties of the Rice-field Mouse
1. Rice-field Mouse. Oryzomys palustris (Harlan). Description and range as above.
2. Florida Marsh Mouse. O. palustris natator Chapman. Larger and much darker.
3. Bangs' Marsh Mouse. O. palustris coloratus Bangs. Still larger and more richly coloured, decidedly reddish brown above.