The Winter Habits of the Northern White-Footed Mouse

Small Mammals in Old Field Succession

“…Various authors have found decreased activity of Peromyscus in the winter (Hatfield 1940, Hamilton 1941, Thomsen 1945, Sealander 1952. This behavior of Peromyscus in winter would tend to reduce traveling distances, which I have found to be the case in all habitats.…”

The Relationship of Nest Protection and Huddling to Survival of Peromyscus at Low Temperature

“…Pearse and Hall 1928;Brody 1945), in discussions of body temperature regulation. Thomsen (1945) has reported huddling behavior for P. l. noveboracensis and this type of behavior, especially at low temperatures, appears to be characteristic of all members of this genus. Other species of rodents, including the laboratory mouse and the white rat, and many species of bats exhibit such group responses to low temperature, but among the small insectivores, such as shrews and moles, no gregarious behavior !las been reported.…”

“…33,No. Thomsen ( 1945) in a study of the winter habits of the northern white-footed mouse found that during the day his mice remained quiet, huddled in a corner of the cage, and assumed that they spend the day in their winter nest in similar huddles. Others have frequently assumed a considerable protective value for the nest during periods of cold weather without making any actual measurements of the degree of protection offered.…”

“…Others have frequently assumed a considerable protective value for the nest during periods of cold weather without making any actual measurements of the degree of protection offered. Thomsen ( 1945) in a study of the winter habits of the northern white-footed mouse found that during the day his mice remained quiet, huddled in a corner of the cage, and assumed that they spend the day in their winter nest in similar huddles. Huddles are common among caged mice in the laboratory, and especially so when deprived of nesting materials at low temperature.…”

Behavioral Population Regulation in the Woodmouse, Peromyscus leucopus

“…These mice are not known to breed during the winter. Woodmice probably have a different social structure during the winter, as several authors have reported these mice living together and sharing a common home range (Burt, 1940';Nicholson, 1941;Thomsen, 1945). These winter aggregations.…”