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The genus
Onychomys contains species commonly referred to as
grasshopper mice. This is a genus of New World mouse only distantly related to the common house mouse,
Mus musculus. There are three species. They are endemic to the United States and Mexico.
Its behavior is rather distinct from other mice. It is a carnivorous rodent, dining on
insectInsects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s (such as
grasshopperThe grasshopper is an insect of the suborder Caelifera in the order Orthoptera. To distinguish it from bush crickets or katydids, it is sometimes referred to as the short-horned grasshopper...
s),
wormThe term worm refers to an obsolete taxon used by Carolus Linnaeus and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck for all non-arthropod invertebrate animals, and stems from the Old English word wyrm. Currently it is used to describe many different distantly-related animals that typically have a long cylindrical...
s,
scorpionScorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
s,
snakeSnakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s, and even other
miceA mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
. It also stalks its prey in the manner of a cat, sneaking up quietly, and defends its territory by "howling" like a small wolf. The Grasshopper Mouse is known to be immune to various venoms released by its prey. (Scorpions, Snakes, etc.)
Species
- Mearns's Grasshopper Mouse, Onychomys arenicola
- Northern Grasshopper Mouse, Onychomys leucogaster
- Southern Grasshopper Mouse
The Southern Grasshopper Mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae.It is found in Mexico and in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah in the United States.-References:...
, Onychomys torridus