Harvest Mouse Micromys minutus

Harvest mice have distinctive orangey-brown upperparts and pure white under parts. They are the only British animal to possess a prehensile tail which can be twisted around plant stems to act as a ‘fifth’ limb to help them climb. They are smaller than other British mice and, unlike wood and house mice, have a blunt, vole-like muzzle rather than a pointed one.

Probably widespread in suitable tussocky grassland habitats across Norfolk. Recent research has shown that reed beds are also an important habitat for this species with good numbers occurring at sites such as NWT Hickling Broad. Any area of rough grassland with tussock-forming species, such as cocksfoot, may support harvest mice.

This species is elusive and difficult to spot. Harvest mice are active both by day and by night, but they are still a notoriously difficult animal to see in the wild. Look out for cricket-ball sized summer nests of woven grass and stems built above ground in dense vegetation. These nests are so well constructed that they survive through to autumn and early winter – good times to look for the now empty nests which are easier to spot once the leaves have fallen.

ARKive
The Mammal Society

Avoid strimming or cutting areas where harvest mice nests have been found until autumn. If you have to cut in the May to August period, leave some refuge areas of tall vegetation, and check carefully for nests before you cut.