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Norway lemming
Norway, Sweden, Finland, extreme north west Europe.
Alpine, tundra, steppe, temperate grasslands, scrub, open forest,
rocks.
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Norway lemming
Reproduction
Gestation 16- 28 days. Reach sexual maturity early (females: 2-3
weeks old, males: 6-8 weeks old). Very fecund. Breed in summer and
winter. Length of breeding season varies. Mated female may fail to
conceive or may abort if exposed to a strange male. Litter size may
vary from 1-12 or more litters per year. Some females genetically
programmed to bear only female offspring.
Behavior
Active day and night. Construct burrows in summer. Survive in snow
by tunneling beneath it. Rely on smell, hearing. Territorial. Calls
indicate social status (alarm calls, threat calls, courtship and
mating calls). Female gives parental care to young. Solitary. Easily
irritated. Spacing behavior- scent marks determine territory. Males
form a hierarchy of dominance in which the subordinates may be
excluded from breeding. Some males are monogamous. Winter communal
nesting to reduce energy requirements.
Food Habits
Herbivorous, diet consisting largely of berries, leaves, grasses,
bark, lichens, roots, green part of plants, bulbs, mosses, pine
needles. Forage both day and night. Graze and dig for roots.
In captivity they should be offered a complete diet of rodent lab blocks,
mushrooms, rat or mouse
mix, and veggies. 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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