Local Wildlife
Deer Mouse
Scientific Name: Peromyscus maniculatus
Addt'l Info: Univ. of Michigan
The deer mouse is a small rodent with a round, slender body. It has a pointed nose, black eyes, disproportionately large ears, and hind legs that are longer than its front legs. Its upper-body fur varies from grayish to reddish-brown while its underbelly is a white or cream color. The fur is short, soft, and dense.
Deer mice are omnivorous, eating a wide variety of plant and animal matter depending on what is available. Meals can include insects, seeds, fruits, flowers, nuts, and other plant products. In cooler climates, the deer mouse caches food in secret stores during the fall in preparation for winter.
Primarily a nocturnal species, you are unlikely to see this native resident of Sunriver. Because they are active at night, deer mice are vulnerable to night-hunting predators such as snakes, owls, and other mammals.
While it spends most of its life on the ground, it is an adept climber. Most activity centers around its nest and food cache. Nests may be constructed just below ground level in a burrow or near the ground in stumps, logs, brush piles, tree cavities, etc. Nests are made of rounded masses of various plant matter.
