Sagebrush Vole - Lemmiscus curtatus
Global Rank:
G5
State Rank:
S4
Agency Status
USFWS:
none
USFS:
none
BLM:
none
CFWCS Tier:
2
General Description
A medium-sized vole under an ounce in weight, the sagebrush vole measures between 4 1/4 and 5 5/8 inches, including its furry, dusky- and white-colored tail. It has thick, pale gray fur, darker above, whitish, silvery, or buffy below. Some individuals may have touches of buff color on their ears or noses (Zeveloff 1988). The feet are white to light gray, thickly covered with fur, with the hind feet being equivalent in length to the short tail (Foresman 2001).
Distribution
Montana Range
Observations in Montana: 78
Montana CountiesBeaverhead, Big Horn, Blaine, Broadwater, Carter, Chouteau, Fallon, Fergus, Garfield, Glacier, Hill, Judith Basin, Lewis and Clark, Madison, Musselshell, Park, Petroleum, Phillips, Powder River, Prairie, Roosevelt, Sheridan, Silver Bow, Stillwater, Valley, Wibaux
Migration
Non-migratory.
Habitat
Sagebrush flats (Lampe et al. 1974) - associated w/ Artemisia sp. partic. Artemisia tridentata (Hoffmann and Pattie 1968). Also may be found in denser vegetation; constructs poorly defined runways. May use dry cattle chips for temporary shelter (Jones et al. 1983).
Food Habits
Leaves, stems, flowers or immature fruits of grasses and forbs. Sagebrush and rabbit brush leaves, inner bark of shrubs in winter and even undigested plant residues in cattle chips when other foods are scarce (Jones et al. 1983).
Ecology
Mobile colonies - occupies deep snow cover areas in winter, S slopes in spring, lower elevations in summer. Highly developed hearing. Not active in strong winds. Numerous predators (Jones et al. 1983).
Reproductive Characteristics
Females and males mature at 1-2 mo.s age. Litter size may Be correlated w/ precip. - available vegetation. Young are altricial at birth - weaned at about 18 days of age.
Citations & Sources
- Burt, W. H. and R. P. Grossenheider. 1964. A field guide to the mammals. 2nd edition. The Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, MA.
- Foresman, K.R. 2001. The wild mammals of Montana. Special Publication No. 12. American Society of Mammalogists
- Kritzman, Ellen B. 1977. Little mammals of the Pacific Northwest. Pacific Search Press, Seattle, WA.
- Zeveloff, S. I. 1988. Mammals of the Intermountain West. Univ. of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, Utah.