Winkelmann's mouse (''Peromyscus winkelmanni'') is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are roden ...

in the family

Cricetidae The Cricetidae are a family of rodents in the large and complex superfamily Muroidea. It includes true hamsters, voles, lemmings, muskrats, and New World rats and mice. At almost 608 species, it is the second-largest family of mammals, a ...

found only in

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

, and is named for John R. Winkelmann, who collected the first specimens.

Description

Rather larger than a

house mouse The house mouse (''Mus musculus'') is a small mammal of the order Rodentia, characteristically having a pointed snout, large rounded ears, and a long and almost hairless tail. It is one of the most abundant species of the genus ''Mus''. Althoug ...

, an adult Winkelmann's mouse measures in total length, about half of which is the tail, and weighs around . The fur is tawny mixed with black over most of the body, becoming darker on the back, sometimes forming a distinct black band in the center of the back, and fading to bright tan or cinnamon on the flanks and cheeks. The under parts are pale grey. The tail has only a thin covering of hair, typically darker on the upper than on the lower surface. Compared with other, related, species, the ears are relatively small and dark in color, and the skull is slightly larger. However, Winkelmann's mouse can most readily be distinguished from its close relatives by the shape of its penis, which has a partially corrugated glans. Females have six teats.

Distribution and habitat

Winkelmann's mouse is found only in a relatively small area of southern

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo (; Purépecha: ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of ...

in Mexico, where it inhabits isolated regions on the western slopes of the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American ...

. It lives in woodland patches of tall oak trees, mixed with pines. These areas have dense understories, and thick epiphytes, including patches of mosses,

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

s, and

bromeliad The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa ...

s. There are no subspecies. Because it is only found in such a small area, and because much of the woodland on which it depends is currently subject to logging, it is formally considered an endangered species by the IUCN.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1765709 Peromyscus Mammals described in 1977 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot