The earth-colored mouse (''Mus terricolor'') is a species of
rodent in the family
Muridae
The Muridae, or murids, are the largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 1,383 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia.
The name Muridae come ...
.
It is found in
India, possibly
Indonesia,
Nepal, and
Pakistan. The earth-colored mouse lives in cultivated fields in raised moist mounds of Earth, where they burrow and locate their nest about 20 cm or 8 inches deep.
[ Singh, S., Cheong, N., Narayan, G., Sharma, T. Burrow characteristics of the co-existing sibling species ''Mus booduga'' and ''Mus terricolor'' and the genetic basis of adaptation to hypoxic/hypercapnic stress. ''BMC Ecology'', (2009).] Living in a raised mound of soil offers them more oxygen flow from air coming through the surrounding sides as well as from above. In contrast, their co-existing sibling species ''
Mus booduga'' burrow in the flat parts of the field, which allows for
niche differentiation.
References
*
Mus (rodent)
Mammals of Pakistan
Mammals of Nepal
Mammals described in 1851
Taxa named by Edward Blyth
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
{{Mus-stub