Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus)
Number 0036
This little guy here, unfortunately, is the most threatening vector of hantavirus in the United States. Four Corners hantavirus (or FCV) is a very real danger here in New Mexico where I live, particularly in rural areas. The virus is contracted when humans breathe in dried mouse droppings or urine that have been aerosolized, or released into the air. You’re advised to take great precaution in cleaning areas where rodents have been—no sweeping or vacuuming, just wet-mopping and wiping!—and in disposing of dead rodents. Here’s the CDC’s hantavirus website.
This deer mouse means The Daily Mammal is all caught up again!
Hey, that’s a cute little fella!
I like the use of so many colors in the fur — reminds me of Seurat’s pointillism, where the painter uses lots of contrasting colors close together to suggest a color that’s a combination of them. Only you’re doing it with strokes, not points. But the effect is a striking vibrancy. It’s hard to pull off — but you do.
Why, thank you!