| Partially arboreal, with a semi-prehensile tail - a tail that it can use to grasp as it climbs - the golden Mouse nests, feeds, and escapes from predators and flooding by climbing trees, vines, and shrubs. Sometimes one will remodel a bird's nest into a home of its own. Golden Mice are common in densely forested floodplain and lowland habitats. They feed mainly on seeds, nuts, and berries but also on invertebrates. Resembling members of the genus Peromyscus, golden Mice can be distinguished from other mice by the gold-colored, soft, dense fur on their back and sides and creamy-white underparts and feet.
Sexual Dimorphism:
Males are larger than females.
Length:
Average:
165 mm
Range:
140-190 mm
Weight:
Range:
18-27 g
References:
Harlan, R., 1832. Description of a new species of quadruped of the genus Arvicola (A. Nuttalli). Monthly American Journal Geol. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 1:446.
Links:
Mammal Species of the World
Click here for The American Society of Mammalogists species account
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