Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1908-01-02
WAYS OF MEADOW MICE.
Little Animal VIII Eat Twenty-six
Pounds of Vegetation in a Year.

Little Animal VIII Eat Twenty-six
Pounds of Vegetation in a Year.
The meadow mouse makes a nest of
grass blades in the ground In shallow
burrows, and II the ground Is wet or
sloughy puts 1t in bunch Of grass five
Or six Inches above the surface, says
the Montreal Family Herald. The
meadow mouse Is prolific If the farm
er had brood sows or cows or ewes that
bred like meadow mice he would soon
be overstocked. Most Of the species
produce from four to six ltters a year,
the American species usually producing
six at time and four lltters in a sea-
son. If there was nothing to stop the
Increase the progeny Of single pair
would In five seasons amount to over
100000, and would about clear out
| the farmers crops.
What does this little fellow eat?
Pretty hard to tell, because he grlnds
up his feed so fine that 1t takes an ex-
pert to tell what 1t is; but in summer
1t Is some kind Of grass or vegetation,
unrlpe seeds or grain and in winter
whatever he can get. If he can find
nothing better he takes the bark Of
cherry or apple tree, and the farmer
blames 1t on rabbits. 1t Is calculated
that each grown meadow mouse re-
quires from twenty-four to twenty-six
pounds Of green vegetation a year. He
Is particularly fond of strawberry beds,
likes to nlbble around at the plants in
the garden and the potatoes In the
ground, or other winter stores, and Is
rather fond Of alfalfa and clover. In
fact, there Is no green vegetation that
IS not acceptable to the meadow mouse.
Why is 1t, therefore, that they do not
multiply? Because about everything
.hat Is carnlverous has a tooth for
meadow mice The wolf, the fox, the
coon, the opossum, the mink, the skunk
and the weasel all get large amount
Of their living from meadow mice. SO
do hawks owls, crows and the butcher
bird. All these have particular fond
ness for meadow mice.
The meadow mouse has never done
any very serious damage In this coun-
try, but If the small boy keeps on shoot
ing every screech owl he comes across
,nd ever fowl and hawk, besides those
that have acquired the bad habit Of
Matching young chickens; II he wages
warfare on the birds and skunks and
about everything that he can shoot at
he must not be surprised If, after some
dry season. the meadow mice will make
his father wonder what Is the matter
with his crops. 1t never pays to dis
turb the plans Of nature.
The way to avoid calamity Of this
kind Is to let the natural enemies of
meadow mice alone, unless they de-
velop particularly obnoxious habits;
drain out swamps; adopt q rotation OF
crops that will require the plowing up
Of grass lands every three or four
years to destroy all weeds, trash and
litter, particularly in the orchard. and
thus prevent meadow mice from having
good winter quarters. II these meth
DDS are followed there Is no danger;
but II the small boy Is allowed to use
his gun at his pleasure we may be in I
the same shape that the farmers Of
Scotland were some years ago, when
the landlords waged war on the hawks .
and owls because 1t was supposed they
nterfered with the young pheasants
which the nobility came to shoot.
farmers were In the same
'redicament after the Legislature Of
'ered bounty for a few years on
oawks and owls.
We do not write this because we
hink there is any immediate danger
nut simply to emphasize this point, to
which we have 80 often adverted, that
We cannot disturb natures plans with.
'ut In the end being punished for it.