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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMarch 13, 2003 - Musings on the mouse The Suffolk Times • March 13, 2003 • usl n s on e mouse � .����; � � � J a��, ����: � -����� m � E� X� �y.. �°�� �� � �'' �' � � �' � � � �. � � � � • ° �' X � ., e, � �,�� � ��. � �' �� „� �; ��,: �' ,�� .�' � � � Times/Review photo by Paul Stoutenburgh One of the most handsome mice we have is the little deer mouse,with its big ears and beady black eyes.You'll flnd the remnants of his cache of nuts in your garage, your favorite birdhouse or possibly down in your cellar. � MY cR�rrDD�u�xTEx next oor I've spoken of this little brown bird tells an interesting story about a little before because of its cheerful song visitor in her bedroom.Seems she was during our winter months.Well,to working on her computer and heard make a long story short,they figured an odd noise.l'hey have a cat so she out how the wren got into the house. didn't think too much of it,but then it �ey decided that her brother sleeps sounded so unusual.It had a flutter to �,�,ith his window open about three it.Looking around,she saw a little inches or so and the bird must have bird hopping gotten into the house through the par- down the hall- tially open window.Gradually they F�G V$ way.How could worked the bird toward the window O� a bird get in the and out it went.That was yesterday. house? She does- Today,looking out our back window, NATURE n't sleep with her �,ho do we see flitting around and by Paul window open.So under the eaves and around the porch Stoutenburgh she called her railings but the Carolina wren.She mother upstairs �,vas none the worse for wear and I'm and between the happy to report there were actually two of them they determined it was a two of them.That combination looks Carolina wre house.We hope it stays out there,but I won't be surprised to see its telltale thistle-sized droppings somewhere in the kitchen cabinets,indicating its endless pursuit of food. A mouse we're probably not as familiar with but that comes into our good for the coming season.Hope garage and is often found in our cellar they again nest in my garage.They are is the little deer mouse.It's the most Let me relate an interesting mouse perfect tenants. attractive of all mice.It has big ears story that happened years ago when I The little bird that Sara saw running and big shiny black eyes.It has a white was traveling with Art Cooley and his down the hallway reminded me of a belly and a lovely reddish-gray coat. class.It was winter and we were down similar occasion.It happened one day It's basically a woodland mouse but, at Jones Beach looking for hawks and while we were sitting in our living like all mice,it takes advantage of any owls.We must have had 15 kids with room.Out of the corner of my eye I good place to nest and spend the win- us.We came to a small clump of pines caught a movement in the greenhouse ter.As soon as summer comes,they and walked over to see if we could that is attached to the house.It was a will leave the house. find an owl.Sure enough,we found little gray mouse that was exploring I remember we had an occasion to one,a saw-whet owl,the smallest of all new sources of food. meet this handsome little mouse years our owls.This owl is only about four We have basically three kinds of ago when we were renting a cottage or five inches tall and everyone want- mice.The little gray house mouse is and our kids were very small.We ed to see it. the one I saw and most people are heard this scampering about at night. Art told them to go around in a cir- familiar with.It's found worldwide.It In the morning we found that an cle and get down on their was probably brought to the North enterprising female deer mouse had hands and knees and crawl American continent by the early set- made a nest with material from one of in toward the center. tlers via their boats.That was how the children's blankets and had its Everyone did just that, they got around.These little balls of young in its newly built nest during including yours truly.As we fur hid in the boxes and trunks and the night.The young were odd-look- crawled in we could all see various articles that were brought ing little globs of pinkish flesh with this little owl watching our ashore.In tirne they set up housekeep- their eyes closed. every move.With all the ing wherever they landed. The third mouse is one we find in commotion,we had scared They make a nest using what is our fields and meadows:the meadow up a meadow mouse that available:cloth,paper,grass,fur,etc. mouse or vole.'I'his is the one that ran up one of the small trees.The owl We're told that the gray house mouse makes all the tunneled runways under spotted it and immediately flew in and originated in Asia and has the snow and if the snow isn't there it grabbed the mouse,nipped him behind traveled the world by makes its passagewa s under the the head and carried him to the upper- camel caravan or ship or grass.In the spring I see the tunnels in most part of the tree.What a demon- with marching troops,etc. our back pasture.They seem to be stration those kids—and I—had of Wherever man has gone, everywhere. nature in the raw.We all backed out mice have traveled with They are prolific breeders.A female quietly,leaving the little saw-whet owl him.It was the little ra to his freshly caught meal. g Y will have up to 13 litters or more a Another time we were on a house mouse with its long year,producing over 100 young.We're tail that caught my eye as thankful we have predators that keep Christmas bird count'in Orient.We it ran b in the green- the numbers down.The fox is skilled saw the bird called a shrike.It had caught a mouse and had flown to a in stalking them and then,of course,at limb of a tree,where he left it.The night the owls with their extremely shrike's nickname is the"butcher bird" keen hearing can locate them moving because it catches mice and small birds about.Once movement is heard,the and when it has eaten its fill,hangs the owl drops down on the vole with remains on the thorn of a tree for later Wherever silent wings.Then the hawks,like the use.We were in awe of the shrike, man haS little sparrow hawk,sharp-shinned watching it through our binoculars.We hawk,Cooper's hawk or merlin,all must have scared him,for he left his �''',OII@y Il'IIC� re on them, mouse dangling in the tree as he flew have traveled •rnese meadow mice are real prob- away.We knew he'd be back later. Wlth hllll. lems for the orchard grower.When it Mice,whether they be the timid house snows they have their tunnels moving mouse,the handsome deer mouse or all about the orchard,often right up to the meadow mouse,are all part of the the fruit trees,whose inner bark is interesting world we live in very nutritious.The mice will gnaw the bark around the whole trunk of the tree.Once that is done the tree is doomed.If you're an orchard grower you welcome the fox,the hawk and the owl to help keep down the mead- ow mouse o ulation.