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Golden mouse
The golden mouse lives in thick woodlands, swampy areas, among
vines, and within small trees and shrubs. It especially likes to
live where honeysuckle, greenbrier, and red cedar grow.
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Golden mouse
The body length of O. nuttalli ranges from 51 to 115mm. The
prehensile tail is from 50 to 97mm in length, generally the same
length as the body of the mouse to which it belongs. The golden
mouse gets its common name from the thick and soft golden fur that
covers its upper body. However, its feet and undersides are white
and its tail has a cream coloring. The male golden mouse has a
baculum tipped with cartilage. The female has six mammae. The cheek
teeth of the golden mouse contain thick folds of enamel. As in other
Muridae, this mouse has an infraorbital foramen with a distinct
keyhole shape. Neither canines nor premolars are present. The
incisors are sharp and long, separated from the cheek teeth by a
diastema.
The climate of its range in the south-central region of the United
States is hot and wet in the summer and dry in the winter. Its nest
may be located in the trees or on the ground. Ground nests,
frequently located near leaf litter, may be fabricated within sunken
areas of the soil or beneath logs. Ground nests have both advantages
and disadvantages. Floods or wet soil may force golden mice to leave
their ground nests and relocate into the trees. However, if the
ground nest is undisturbed, it can lower the risk for predation for
the following reasons: the nest is well hidden, a mouse on the
ground is more likely to escape a predator, and less energy is
required to build a nest on the ground since the mouse doesn't have
to keep running up and down a tree with nesting materials.
Reproduction
The golden mouse reproduces all year long. However, the majority of
O. nuttalli reproduce from September to spring in Texas but from
March to October in Kentucky and Tennessee. Golden mice in captivity
tend to reproduce most frequently during the early spring and late
summer. Because the gestation period is only about thirty days,
females can produce many litters in one year. Captive mothers have
been known to produce up to seventeen litters in an eighteen month
period. A litter of golden mice typically consists of two or three
young, but ranges from one to four. Aside from the mother, all other
adults leave the nest when the litter is born.
Behavior
A golden mouse has been known to remodel an old bird nest into a
home for itself. Otherwise it creates the 100 - 200mm nest from
scratch using different elements, depending on what is available in
its environment. The inner lining consists of soft materials such as
milkweed, cotton, feathers, or fur. A thick layer of woven fibers
surrounds the fluffy layer. The protective, surface material
contains leaves, grass, and bark. The nest usually has one entrance
although up to three have been noted.
Food Habits
The golden mouse is granivorous, eating mostly seeds. It prefers
sumac seeds but also consumes honeysuckle and other seeds as well.
Sumac seeds are poor quality food because they contain tannin, which
reduces the efficiency of enzymes in the mouse's digestive pathway.
Studies have shown that females fed year-old seeds, which have more
calories, have significantly higher mean ingestion and assimilation
rates than females that eat freshly matured seeds. Flooding is a
problem for the golden mouse because the water causes the seeds to
be unobtainable, to sprout, or to spoil.
In captivity they should be offered a complete diet of rodent lab blocks, and rat or mouse
mix, with bits of fruit or veggies regularly. Cheerios or wheat
bread are great treats, in small quantities. Do NOT feed chocolate,
fried foods, salted foods, candy or junk food! They may enjoy
crickets and mealworms if they are captive bred, never feed wild
insects as they may carry parasites. Vitamins, like Nutri-Cal are a good addition to their diet, and added calcium
during nursing and growth due to demands on their systems at those
times, but take care not to overdo it. Water bottles should be used
to proved constant, clean water. Ceramic or stoneware food dishes
work well for keeping seeds or fresh foods off the floor, and a wire
mesh hopper that allows them to eat the lab blocks through without
extra waste.
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