House Mouse

Field guide to the most commonly encountered mammals and birds

Here, we provide some basic information regarding commonly observed species (plus some others about which we have had queries).

Feel free to contact us by email if you have any questions regarding species you have encountered on the site.

For more information about mammals, we recommend the Mammal Society's species hub, here, and MammalNet here. For birds, excellent resources are available from the RSPB (here) and the BTO (here).

Scientific name: Mus (musculus) domesticus

Family: Muridae

Appearance: The House Mouse is greyer than both the Wood Mouse and the Yellow-necked Mouse and has smaller eyes, ears and hind feet. Its tail is naked and it has a more pointed nose than other mouse species.

Size: Head and body 6-10 cm; Tail 6-10 cm; Weight 12-22 g.

Natural history: The House Mouse is nocturnal and is active throughout the year. It lives either in burrows in the ground or - if in buildings - in drains, roof spaces or behind walls. It can breed at any time of year with each female capable of giving birth to between 5 and 10 litters a year each containing 5-8 young. The juveniles reach sexual maturity at just 5 or 6 weeks old. Will feed on almost anything if indoors, outdoor populations eat mainly grain.