African harvest mouse

African harvest mouse
	African harvest mouse ( Mus minutoides )
Systematics
Superfamily :	Mice-like (Muroidea)
Family :	Long-tailed mice (Muridae)
Subfamily :	Old World Mice (Murinae)
Tribe :	Murini
Genre :	Mice ( Mus )
Type :	African harvest mouse
Scientific name
	Mus minutoides
	A. Smith , 1834

The African Pygmy Mouse , also African tots mouse ( Mus minutoides ) is to Altweltmäusen counted (Murinae) small kind of muridae (Muridae).

Altogether ten species of harvest mice occur in the area south of the Sahara, of which Mus minutoides has the largest distribution area. The status of Mus musculoides is controversial . While some biologists consider it a distinct species, others consider it a subspecies of or identical to Mus minutoides .

distribution

The distribution area extends south of the Sahara from South Africa , Zimbabwe to Mozambique . It prefers open bush and steppe landscapes, but is also found as a crop pest in the vicinity of human settlements. The basic condition for the harvest mouse to occur is water, in the vicinity of which it is always present.

External features

The African harvest mouse reaches a head and trunk length of about five centimeters, a tail length of four to six centimeters and a weight of about five grams. The body is gray to reddish brown on top, the underside is white. The tail is provided with clearly visible scale rings and sparsely hairy.

behavior

In their habitat, the harvest mouse lives in groups or family associations. It stays below the grass cover or within the grass layer. Some researchers also report extensive duct systems that are created just below the sward.

The animals are mainly crepuscular and nocturnal . The mice are not particularly shy once they have settled in and know that nothing will happen to them. It should be absolutely avoided to touch the animals, as their size can quickly lead to bruises and internal injuries. If the animals need to be touched, it is advisable to grab them by the tail, as close as possible to the body or, even better, to hold them in the cupped hand.

The tot mice are group animals that create community nests and also raise their young together. Keeping them alone does not correspond to the natural behavior of the mice and is not recommended. Several males can be kept together as long as there are more females.

There are usually problems when adding dwarf mice to an existing group afterwards. Here it is advisable to set up the terrarium from scratch and to add more than one harvest mouse so that the group has to form anew in a new territory.

The harvest mice live to be around two years old if they are well kept, other sources speak of four to five years.

Reproduction

In their homeland, the harvest mouse is not tied to certain reproductive periods. Litters occur throughout the year and are not dependent on the rainy season. In the wild, miniature mice can reach an age of around two years.

The African harvest mouse is able to reproduce all year round if there is sufficient food. An average of two to four young are born per litter.

The young animals are born naked, blind, deaf and unpigmented after about 19 days of gestation and weigh less than a gram. Eight days later the first hairs sprout, after twelve days the eyes are opened. After 16 to 18 days, the young have their youthful gray fur, which can later turn brown. When they are around 21 days old, they can be weaned off by their mother, when they have reached a body weight of around five grams. The young animals reach sexual maturity at five to seven weeks.