104 CALIFORNIA MAMMALS. 



from light grayish wood brown to dark drab or hair brown, 

 darkest along the back and top of the shoulders ; feet and lower 

 parts from nose to tail white; tail distinctly bicolor, the upper 

 third brown or dusky, the remainder white. Occasionally a red- 

 dish or fawn colored individual is found ; these are usually 

 old animals. You7ig; mouse gray, scarcely lighter on the sides; 

 belly grayish or ashy. 



Length about i6o mm. (6.30 inches) ; tail vertebrae 74 

 (2.90) ; hind foot 20 (.80) ; ear from, crown 17 (.67). 



Type locality, Monterey, California. 



The Gambel Mice are generally distributed from northern 

 Lower California to Oregon, and from the western border of the 

 Deserts west to the seacoast. They are found in the greatest 

 variety of situations from the seacoast to timberline in tne high 

 mountains. They are perhaps less fond of brushy localities than 

 several other species of the genus and frequent rocky localities 

 more than they do. 



The food consists of a great variety of seeds, leaves, twigs, 

 bark, insects or flesh of any kind that may fall in their way. 

 The young are born at all times of the year except in the coldest 

 part of the winter ; they are four to eight in number. The nests 

 are warm masses of grass, sometimes lined with hair or feathers, 

 and are placed in crevices among rocks, hollows in trees, or in 

 burrows in the ground. The young are nearly hairless when 

 born and are blind, the eyes not opening for several days. 



This species frequents houses and other buildings in regions 

 where the introduced house mouse has not become common. 

 They are easily trapped in almost any kind of trap baited with 

 grain, bread or fresh meat. 



Peromyscus texanus deserticolus Me:arns. (Desert in- 

 habiting.) 



DESERT DEER MOUSE. 



Pale; above yellowish drab, the sides tinged with ochraceous; 



