WILD RATS AND MICE 
89 
habiting the wet rice-fields and swamps of the 
Gulf states from Texas up to southern New 
Jersey, its northern limit. It has a long head, a 
sharp nose, a shapely body, prominent ears, and 
a long tail. Its color above is bleached brown, 
but its under surface is grayish, or dull white. 
This mouse is partial to the vicinity of water, 
especially the banks of rice-fields. It swims and 
dives well, and sometimes builds its nest and 
rears its young in interlaced marsh grass, over 
water, and far from dry ground. 
The Cotton Rat, or Marsh Rat , 1 is a species 
homa, New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico; and 
wherever found their destructiveness causes 
them to be cordially disliked. 
The White-Footed Mouse, or Deer Mouse , 2 
is well worthy of acquaintance. It is distributed 
over nearly the whole of upper North America, ex- 
cept the arctic islands, and the Barren Grounds. 
On account of the changes it has undergone, 
chiefly in color shades, and length of tail, natural- 
ists now recognize in the United States and Can- 
ada about seventy species and, subspecies ! But 
the student need not be discouraged by this fact. 
RICE-FIELD MOUSE. COTTON RAT. 
which any country may well be without. It is 
small for a rat, but courageous, vicious in tem- 
per and voracious in appetite. It is fond of 
flesh, and when several are caged together, the 
stronger ones do not scruple to kill and eat weaker 
rats of their own kind. In length it is the size of 
a large chipmunk, 6 + 4 inches. The upper 
surface of the body and head, and outside of the 
legs, are dark mottled yellowish-brown, the under 
surface and inside of legs dull white, or brownish- 
gray. Cotton Rats are found from North Caro- 
lina to southern Florida, and also in. Texas, Okla- 
1 Sigmodon hispidus. 
Every White-Footed Mouse can be recognized 
by the clean white or light gray color on the under 
half of its body, head, tail and inner surfaces of 
the legs, its white feet, and its long tail. The color 
of the back is usually gray, or brown, or a mixt- 
ure of the two. 
Of all the small mice of North America, I con- 
sider this the most beautiful, and one of the most 
interesting. In the eastern states, where small 
quadrupeds and birds are numerous, it attracts 
little attention, but on the western plains, and 
in the desert regions, where animal life is very 
2 . Peromyscus leucopus. 
