THE ZOOLOGIST. 



THIRD SERIES. 



Vol. VI.] APRIL, 1882. [No. 64. 



ON THE BREEDING HABITS OF THE LONG-TAILED 



FIELD MOUSE. 



By Richard M. Barrington. 



About the 1st of October, 1880, I noticed two Long-tailed 

 Field Mice, Mus sylvaticus, sunning themselves outside a hole 

 in one of my clover-fields. They are not uncommon here 

 (Fassaroe, Bray). The two I observed were young ones, about 

 twelve days old, their eyes being barely open. I caught them 

 readily, and, probing the hole, discovered the nest about three 

 feet from the entrance, with three other young ones in it, doubt- 

 less the offspring of the same parents. I carried the five home, 

 and placed them in a box with wool and fine grass. Next 

 morning they were almost dead, but recovered sufficiently in my 

 trowsers pocket to take drops of warm milk from the end of a 

 straw. Keeping them on the mantelpiece over the fire, and 

 putting in my pocket occasionally before feeding, I managed to 

 rear them and compensate for the loss of the warmth of their 

 parent. In a few days they sucked warm milk from soaked bread, 

 and gradually came to eat the bread itself. 



They were kept in a small box with two partitions, and 

 the box was placed in a large cage on the mantelpiece. The 

 following memoranda are taken from my notes : — Oct. 24th, grass 

 nest made by mice for first time, being thirty- six days ago. 

 Nov. 1st, one mouse killed by accident in revolving wheel at end 

 of small box. Nov. 15th, grass nest changed from one partition 

 of small box into the other partition. Dec. 11th, nest moved 



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