Mouse (rodent)

Mouse (rodent), common name for any small member of three families of rodents; large species of one of the families to which mice belong are known as rats (see Rat). The word mouse has no exact meaning in classification systems. Mice are numerous throughout most of the world, but for convenience they are often grouped as the Eurasian mice and the American mice. Fields and human habitations serve as homes for these animals. Mice, like rats, consume and damage large quantities of food and spread diseases.

The common house mouse is the most frequently observed species and is the ancestor of the white mice that are raised for scientific experimentation. In its wild state the house mouse is slightly less than 17 cm (less than 6.5 in) long including the tail, which is slightly more than 8 cm (more than 3 in) long; domestic mice, because of better nutrition, are often considerably larger. The house mouse is yellowish-gray above, sometimes streaked with black, and lighter gray beneath. It breeds every 10 to 17 weeks throughout the year, producing five to ten young in a litter.

There are many species of common American wood mice. The deer mouse, slightly larger than the house mouse, is a common American outdoor mouse. Prevalent in the southern United States is the cotton mouse. Dark brown with grayish feet, it is injurious to cotton plants. The grasshopper, or scorpion, mice inhabit western North America and differ from typical mice in feeding primarily on insects and other arthropods. The common wood mouse inhabits Europe. Harvest mice are common in America and Europe. The so-called field, or meadow, mouse is classed as a vole. The name mouse is applied also to the pocket mouse, to jumping mice, and to the dormouse and its relatives.

Scientific classification: Mice belong to the families Muridae, Cricetidae, and Platacanthomyidae of the order Rodentia. The common house mouse is classified as Mus musculus, the deer mouse as Peromyscus maniculatus, and the cotton mouse as Peromyscus gossypinus. Grasshopper mice make up the genus Onychomys. The common wood mouse of Europe is classified as Apodemus sylvaticus. American harvest mice make up the genus Reithrodontomys. The harvest mouse of Europe is classified as Micromys minutus.