The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-02-07
JUMPING MICE.

The jumping mouse is the sWiftest
four footed animal of it's size which I
have met in the eastern States. When
trying to escape from an enemy it al
most flies. AS it is chiefly nocturnal
in its habits. it Is comparatively sell
dom seen, but occasionally a farmer.
| when ploughing rough ground or when
| making hay, wifi start one from be-
meath clod of earth or a haycock, and
be witness to burst of speed which
is almost startling. Propelled by it's
long hind legs, it bounds away over the
ground, like miniature kangaroo,
finally diving into some safe retreat
where the most diligent search would
fail to reveal it.
Sometimes. too, we may rescue one
from the cat, and then we have a
chance to see what a jumping mouse
looks like. The first thing to impress
us is unusual length of tail, which is
considerably greater than that of the
head and body together. Otherwise 1t
is not large mouse. The head is long
and narrow; the nose fairly sharp;
mouth small and FAR back: eyes rath-
err small whiskers long and ears
prominent. The fore feet are small
and have each four toes, and nail
where the thumb should be. The hind
feet are much larger and have each five
toes. The tail is scaly and apparently
naked, but if we examine it closely, we
shall find it covered with short. silky
hairs which lie very fiat and point
towards the tip The color of the head
and back is dark reddish brown; the
sides and the onter surface of the legs
are yellow and the under parts are
white.
The jumping mouse seems to prefer
farm land to any other; especially
land which is newly broken. The heavy
clods Of newly turned sod do not lie
close, but have open spaces between
and below them, and here the mouse
finds many suitable hiding places.
Throughout the greater part of their
range, which extends from Hudsons
Bay to North Carolina, jumping mice
seem to be a rather rare animal. At
least they are rare most of the time, but
in certain summers one is apt to see
more specimens in a month than in the
preceding five years. Perhaps they are
most often seen in the late summer,
after the meadows have been cleared,
and when the various farming opera
tons have destroyed many of their
homes and hiding-places. At such
times. if you are sitting very quiet, you
may be lucky enough to see jumping
mouse working his way gently through
the leaves and stubble, much as any
other mouse might do. But IL you rise
to get better look at him, he would
probably dash away with great leaps,
perfectly astonishing considering the
small size of the performer. At times,
however, instead of bounding away
when an enemy is near, he will crouch
meekly in the grass, sometimes even
allowing himself to be picked up with
out making the least attempt to escape
Jumping mice are good swimmers, and
when necessary do not hesitate to cross
small streams.
The nests In which the young of
these mice are born are said to be
usually made in plowed fields. They
generally consist of fine grass and
leaves, sometimes with few feathers
or little wool or hair. Audubon
mentions that they are occasionally
found beneath the roots Of trees in the
forest. but perhaps the nests referred
to were those of the woodland jumping
mouse. rather larger member of the
same family.
In the autumn the Jumper bur-
rows deeper into the earth and sleeps
away the winter out of reach of the
frost. Whether, like the chipmunk, he
occasionally wakes up to take a meal. |
l don't know, but at any rate he often
stores away large quantity of food |
He feeds chiefly on seeds, particularly
those of several noXious weeds, but he |
also eats chestnuts, wheat, corn, buck |
wheat, berries and mushrooms, and it |
is not unlikely that he also eats insects, |
a food enjoyed by most small rodents. +,
1t is thought that jumping mice are
dormant for a longer period than are
most of our other alternating animals,
and it has been stated on good author |
ity that they pass six months or more |
each year, curled up asleep in their |
underground nests. They probably re-
tire to these nests in November, and