Mammals of the WorldLong-tailed Field Mouse
Apodemus sylvaticus
- Order
- Rodentia
- Family
- Muridae
- Genus
- Apodemus
- IUCN status
- LC
- Distribution
- Iceland|Norway|Sweden|Ireland|United Kingdom|Portugal|Spain|France|Netherlands|Belgium|Luxembourg|Switzerland|Liechtenstein|Italy|Austria|Germany|Denmark|Czech Republic|Slovakia|Hungary|Slovenia|Croatia|Bosnia and Herzegovina|Serbia|Kosovo|Montenegro|Albania|Greece|North Macedonia|Bulgaria|Turkey|Romania|Moldova|Poland|Ukraine|Belarus|Lithuania|Russia|Morocco|Algeria|Tunisia
- Realm
- Palearctic
Other names: Small Wood Mouse|Wood Mouse
About this species
- Size
- About 90mm long
- Weight
- About 23g
- Diet
- Mainly seeds; also berries, fruit, fungi, roots and small invertebrates
- Habitat
- Burrows and nests; sometimes buildings in harsh seasons
- Gestation
- 23–27 days
The wood mouse, also called the long-tailed field mouse, is a small murid rodent that differs from the yellow-necked mouse in having no yellow band round the neck, slightly smaller ears and a slightly smaller size, about 90mm long and 23g. If caught by the tail it can shed the end, which may never regrow (Wikipedia, general species account).
It is almost entirely nocturnal and terrestrial, burrows extensively and builds nests of plants. It eats mainly seeds, and in places lives in buildings in harsh seasons. Gestation is 23 to 27 days and a female produces on average four young a year. The sources opened here describe it as native to Europe and north-west Africa, so how it occurs in Nepal is unclear and the entry is flagged. Nationally Least Concern (Nepal National Red List 2011).
Description: Wildlife of Nepal guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com); general species information paraphrased from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)