harvest mouse

noun

1. an Old World field mouse, Micromys minutus, that builds a spherical nest among the stems of grains and other plants.

2. any of several New World mice of the genus Reithrodontomys having similar habits.

harvest mouse

noun

1. a very small reddish-brown Eurasian mouse, Micromys minutus, inhabiting cornfields, hedgerows, etc, and feeding on grain and seeds: family Muridae

2. American harvest mouse any small greyish mouse of the American genus Reithrodontomys: family Cricetidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of harvest mouse¹

First recorded in 1805–15

Example Sentences

The harvest mice, which are an endangered species, tend to favour warmer and drier conditions than they would encounter normally in the wild in Scotland.

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“Hurry, get the six best field and harvest mouse archers! Those birds have got to be stopped immediately.”

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His services are increasingly in demand from a new generation of rewilders, including wealthy landowners wanting to bring back beavers, as well as harvest mice, wildcats and white storks.

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The diet of a harvest mouse chiefly consists of seeds, berries and insects, though they have been known to eat moss, roots and fungi as well.

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Discover one of the littlest rodents in Brooklyn: the Eurasian harvest mouse.

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