White-footed mouse

The white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) is a rodent native to North America from Ontario, Quebec, Labrador, and the Maritime Provinces (excluding the island of Newfoundland) to the southwestern United States and Mexico. In the Maritimes, its only location is a disjunct population in southern Nova Scotia.Atlantic Interior, The Natural History of Nova Scotia It is also known as the woodmouse, particularly in Texas.
==Description==
Adults are in length, not counting the tail, which can add another . A young adult weighs . While their maximum lifespan is 96 months, the mean life expectancy for the species is 45.5 months for females and 47.5 for males. In northern climates, the average life expectancy is 12–24 months.Mammalian models for research on aging (1981) 
White-footed Mouse, Quetico.jpg|thumb|In Quetico Provincial Park, Ontario
File:Rhus typhina-Peromyscus leucopus-female.jpg|thumb|Female on a staghorn sumac
==Behavior and diet==
White-footed mice are omnivorous, and eat seeds and insects. They are timid and generally avoid humans, but they occasionally take up residence in ground-floor walls of homes and apartments, where they build nests and store food.
==Similar species==
This species is similar to Peromyscus maniculatus. Like the North American deer mouse, it may carry hantaviruses, which cause severe illness in humans.RR5109-Front Cover-Hantavirus.p65
==Connection to Lyme disease==
It has also been found to be a competent reservoir for the Lyme disease–causing spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi.
==Interactions with humans==
The white-footed mouse is one of the most common mouse species used as laboratory mice after the house mouse, and their domesticated version is called Peromyscus leucopus linville. These domesticated ones also make decent pets.Clive Roots; Domestication - page: 105 They have been bred to have many different colors.
==Parasites==
The white-footed mouse is the favored host for the parasitic botfly Cuterebra fontinella.
==See also==
* Monongahela virus
==References==
== Bibliography ==
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* Ostfeld RS, Miller MC & Hazler KR (1996) Causes and consequences of tick (Ixodes scapularis) burdens on white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus). J Mammal ; 77:266–273.
* Ostfeld RS, Schauber EM, Canham CD, Keesing F & al. (2001) Effects of acorn production and mouse abundance on abundance and Borrelia burgdorferi infection prevalence of nymphal Ixodes scapularis ticks. Vector Borne Zoonot Dis ; 1:55–63
* Pederson AB, Grieves TJ (2008) The interaction of parasites and resource cause crashes in wild mouse population. J Anim Ecol ; 77:370–377
* Schwan, TG, Burgdorfer, W, Schrumpf, ME, Karstens, RH. (1988) The urinary bladder, a consistent source of Borrelia burgdorferi in experimentally infected white-footed mice ( Peromyscus leucopus). J Clin Microbiol ; 26:893–895
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==External links==
* White-footed Mouse, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
* White-footed Mouse, CanadianFauna.com
* White-footed Mouse, Canadian Biodiversity Website
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Category:Mammals described in 1818
Category:Peromyscus
Category:Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque