by Sam H. (Bowdoinham Community School, Grade 4)
I wanted do mice because I've always wanted to be an actor. See, most kids' entertainment companies have a mouse or rat as a character. Also, I thought it would be a challenge.
Mice are rodents. So, like all rodents, they have long front incisors. It is easy to see their big ears. Their thin and sparsely haired tails are a bit longer than their elongated body and they have a very pointed nose that makes their head seem triangular. The house mouse is 150-190 millimeters long.
Mice live almost everywhere. In fact, the house mouse is the most widely distributed animal in the world! (besides humans.) Some mice live in fields. Some even live around water! Most of them hibernate (I haven't found one species that doesn't) especially in Maine. Most of them make nests. In the winter they hibernate, underground or in a hollow tree. Mice probably originated in Asia.
Mice have a very short lifespan, so they breed very fast. In fact, one kind of meadow mouse is the fastest breeder in the world! Baby mice don't stay with Mom long, though. Mom leaves after sixteen days. By then, they are big enough to go on their own. Just think, when they were just born they were as big as your fingernail.
Mice are very interesting creatures. If you don't believe me, remember who was the most widely distributed animal besides humans? Who is the fastest breeder? That's right, mice! You know what? Mice might actually be smarter than we are. See, cats chase mice (cats are very fast.) and they still are the most widely distributed animal besides humans! Humans don't have any natural predators, so we didn't need to learn this when we were cave-people. Of course, mice don't always make things good, either. Mice brought fleas that started the famous bubonic plague (also known as the black plague). Do you know where the word "Mouse" comes from? It means "Thief." Mice have been taking food from humans throughout history. Thank you for reading this, and I hope you learned something.
Grolier CD-rom, 97
Discovering Rats and Mice, by Jill Bailey, published 1987.
House Mouse, University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
White Footed Mouse, University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web