Harvest Mouse

General information

The Harvest Mouse is the smallest of the British rodents weighing only 4 to 6g. They live up to 18 months feeding mainly on seeds, fruits and bulbs. Occasionally, they eat insects, moss and fungi, often storing their food underground for a winter store. Extremely active climbers, they tend to be most active during dusk and dawn. With brilliant hearing, they can react sharply to rustling up to 7m away, quickly freezing or dropping from the stalk zone of long grasses to find cover. Being such a small species they have many predators such as; stoats, foxes, cats, weasels, birds of prey, crows and even pheasants. 

Breeding nests are built high above the ground and are made from woven grass where the female gives birth to 1 to 7 young up to 3 times each year. Young are usually born between May and October with the most born during August. Unfortunately during very cold or wet weather there is a high mortality rate. Born hairless and blind, harvest mice young will not venture out of their nests until they are 11 days old and become completely independent by 16 days.