274 Mammals of Eastern Asia 
The hind foot has the three central digits relatively long, the 
fifth unreduced. The great toe, though moderately short, bears a 
claw and is at least partly opposable. The ear is equipped with 
a triangular valve by which the opening can be closed. There 
are 8 nipples. The typical species is the European Harvest 
Mouse, M. minutus. There is only one form in China, M. minu- 
tus pygmceus, a near relative of the common little species 
M. m. soricinus of western Europe. The European Harvest 
Mouse extends into European Russia. This species is known 
to burrow in the ground as well as to make its nest in hay- 
ricks or off the ground among standing wheat or thistles. The 
nest is a small, ball-shaped mass of dry grasses. From 5 to 8 
young are born in it. 
The Chinese Harvest Mouse, M. m. pygmceus, is dull 
rufous, with a blackish wash and with the hairs gray at the 
roots. The tail is usually longer than the body, the former 
about 2% inches long, the latter 2% inches, the hind foot % 
inch. It is widely distributed in China in Shensi, Fukien, Yun- 
nan, Szechwan, and Hupeh. 
The form found in northern Burma is M. minutus erythrotis 
(meaning "red-eared"). Typically erythrotis is found in the 
Khasi Hills, Assam. These Burmese Mice were found on open 
hillsides, not in dense forest. M. m. usurious and M. m. batarovi 
are races from eastern Siberia, M. m. japonicus from Japan. 
All species are good climbers. 
Vernay's Climbing Mouse, genus Vernaya, stands some- 
what intermediate between Vandeleuria and Chiropodomys. In 
Vernaya the thumb bears a small flattened nail ; the incisor teeth 
are not grooved. There is but a single species, Vernaya fulva, a 
reddish Mouse found in Yunnan and northeastern Burma at 
about 7500 feet. The head and body measure 3y 2 inches, the 
tail 4% inches, the hind foot % inch. 
The Long-tailed Climbing Mice, genus Vandeleuria, are 
pretty red-brown Mice having the tail, which is much longer 
than the head and body, untufted at the tip (compare with 
