70 SECOND BIENNIAL BEPORT [W. VA. 



usually most abundant in the vicinity of water, though it ascends dry hill- 

 sides and inhabits upland meadows in great numbers. I once trapped a 

 specimen within a few yards of the summit of Spruce Knob, Pendleton county, 

 the highest point in the State. 



This mouse spends most of its life above ground in runways which it ex- 

 tends on the surface through grassy and weedy places. Its globular nests 

 of fine grass are placed both above and under ground. There are usually 

 underground burrows about its haunts which it is quick to enter when pursued 

 by an enemy. 



The form of this mouse is thick and stout, with strong jaws. The upper 

 parts of the body are gray -brown and the under-parts light gray washed with 

 yellowish. A full-grown specimen is 5^ inches in length, the tail being 1^ 

 inches in length. It feeds on vegetable matter and occasionally on insects. 

 Frequently found in corn shocks that have been left standing in the field, 

 where it feeds on the grain. Most of its food consists of grasses and is .prob- 

 ably less injurious than is usually supposed. 



Eock Vole of Yellow-cheecked Meadow Mouse, Microtus chrotorrMnus Miller. 



Until recently this mouse was not known from any locality south of the 

 Catskill mountains in New York. On August 8th, 1909, I trapped a specimen 

 of the species near Cranberry Glades. It was caught under the side of a 

 half-decayed log that lay on the bank of a stream a few rods above where the 

 stream entered the glade. Afterward other collectors secured several specimen! 

 in the same locality. This is a rare mammal and but little is known in regard 

 to its habits. 



Northern Pine Mouse, Microtus pinetorum scalop&oidv$ A. & B. 



This very injurious mouse has been collected at White Sulphur Springs, 

 Terra Alta, French Creek, Morgantown, Buckhannon and Peterstown and 

 probably occurs in considerable abundance in all sections below the spruce 

 belt. As compared with the common meadow mouse, this species is smaller, 

 the tail shorter, the fur finer and shorter and it lives almost exclusively under- 

 ground. It travels in burrows, made by itself and by moles, and feeds on fine 

 roots, root bulbs, the bark of wood roots, etc. It often eats potatoes, lily 

 bulbs and the bark from the roots of }oung fruit trees. The most injurious 

 iu its habits of all the native mice. 



Muskrat, Fiber zibeihicus Linn. 



Common along water courses and in swampy lands throughout the State. 

 Frequently forages in truck patches and gardens adjacent to streams of water. 

 Its skras are sold in such numbers that it has become the most valuable fur- 

 bearing animal found in the United States. 



Cooper's Lemming Mouse, Synaptomys cooperi Baird. 



This mouse, by a casual observer, might be mistaken for a common meadow 

 mouse. Its tail, however, is much shorter, being only five-eighths of an inch 

 in length, and the fur is softer and fuller. It is a rare mouse in most locali- 

 ties. Surber has collected it at White Sulphur Springs. I trapped several 

 specimens in mouse roads through the beds of sphagnum moss in Cranberry 

 Glades and have taken it also along a little woodland stream at French Creek. 

 It is said to feed on the stems of grasses, clover, etc. It is not seriously in- 

 jurious in its habits. 



