Disappearance: The Meadow Mouse

The meadow vole, also know as the meadow mouse or the field mouse, has the largest population of any American species in the genus Microtus, appearing throughout Canada, Mexico, and in the northern and eastern regions of the United States. The size and color of the meadow vole adjusts depending on its location. It usually exists in grasslands, favors humid zones, but are equally likely to be found in forests. Microtus pennsylvanicus is sympatric with a diversity of small mammals over its extensive geographic assortment. Hawks, owls and some snakes are predators of Meadow voles. Moreover, they can have ecto- and endo-parasites, such as trematodes, cestodes, nematodes, acanthocephalans, anoplura, siphonaptera, diptera, and acarina. These parasites cause protozoan, bacterial, and viral infections. Microtus pennsylvanicus eats the most

readily available species of sedges, grasses, and herbaceous plants. The grasses Poa, Panicum, and Muhlenbergia are prevailed in the meadow voles’ diet. Microtus pennsylvanicus have short-term activity cycles of 4.8 hours throughout any period of the day.
2) Microtus pennsylvanicus are highly adaptable species.

Although they are not capable to climb, meadow voles are good swimmers. They use this ability to find food that they can’t reach. Meadow voles live in nests and uphold their foraging patterns each season. It is an open habitat organism. Ideal vole habitats comprise of a compressed mat of flora or any other available resources in order to protect their tunnel systems. They build nests in shallow underground cavities during the warmer seasons. However, during colder seasons Meadow voles build their nests on the ground, because a layer of snow hides them from the predators. Meadow mice are characterized by their boom-bust population cycles. Population density can differ from several to several hundred species per hectare over a 2-5 year period. Meadow voles are the one of the world's most prolific mammals. Males and females live in separate nests, and only make contact during copulation. Peak breeding activity occurs in spring and autumn. The gestation period is about 20 to 21 days, after which meadow voles normally have 4 to 6 litters, with approximately 11 nestlings per

litter.
3) The season and the temperature play a significant role in the growth and the development of the young. Early in the breeding season litters are usually born mature and gain weight fast, because of the effect of the extensive photoperiod. Instead, those born late in the breeding season who suffer from poor environmental lighting conditions don’t grow fast.