Eva's desert mouse
{{Short description|Species of rodent}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Eva's desert mouse
| status = LC| status_system = IUCN3.1
| genus = Peromyscus
| species = eva
| authority = Thomas, 1898
| synonyms = Peromyscus eremicus carmeni Townsend, 1912}}
Eva's desert mouse (Peromyscus eva) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is a species of the genus Peromyscus, a closely related group of New World mice often called "deermice". It is endemic to the Baja California peninsula of Mexico.Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. Pp. 894-1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
Description
Eva's desert mouse measures {{convert|19|cm|abbr=on}} from head to rump, on average, and has a {{convert|10|cm|abbr=on}} tail. They weigh between {{convert|13|and|20|g}}. The fur is russet or buff in color over most of the body, with pale grey markings on the nose, cheeks, and around the eyes. The ears are pale brown and almost hairless, and the underparts creamy white. It can most clearly be distinguished from the cactus mouse, which is found in the same geographical region, by the shape of the baculum, although it is also typically darker in color, and with a longer tail.{{cite journal | author1 = Álvarez-Castañeda, S.T. | author2 = Cortés-Calva, P. | year = 2003 | title = Peromyscus eva | journal = Mammalian Species | issue = 738 | pages = 1–3 | doi = 10.1644/738 | s2cid = 198123098 | url = http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/738_Peromyscus_eva.pdf | access-date = 2015-06-24 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055810/http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/738_Peromyscus_eva.pdf | archive-date = 2016-03-04 | url-status = dead | doi-access = free }}
Little is known of the animal's biology, although it is usually found close to succulent plants, and appears to breed between February and July.
Distribution and habitat
Eva's desert mouse lives only in the southern part of the Baja California peninsula in Mexico. Within this region, it inhabits scrubland habitats below {{convert|1800|m|abbr=on}} dominated by plants such as cholla, Jatropha, and organ-pipe cactus, and in agricultural land. Two subspecies have been identified:
- Peromyscus eva eva - Mainland Baja California Sur
- Peromyscus eva carmeni - Carmen Island, in the Bahía de Loreto National Park
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Neotominae}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1767515}}
Category:Endemic mammals of Mexico
Category:Rodents of North America
Category:Endemic fauna of the Baja California Peninsula
Category:Fauna of Gulf of California islands
Category:Fauna of the Sonoran Desert
Category:Natural history of Baja California Sur
Category:Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges
Category:Mammals described in 1898
Category:Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas