With winter around the corner, folks in Greater Austin, Texas can expect a variety of rodents infiltrating their homes and businesses. There are different rats and mice that will intrude on homes to escape weather conditions as well as when food becomes scarce. Though there are several species of rodents throughout the Texas homes, today, we A-Tex Pest Management would like to share some important information concerning white-footed mice.
White Footed Mice Identification
White-footed mice reach approximately five inches in length, with their tail making up about a third of their length, and the weight nearly one ounce. Their color varies from a reddish-brown to a light brown and their stomach and feet are generally white. The tails and on top are usually a bit darker.
White Footed Mice Habitat & Range
White-footed mice are found in dry forests and brush-lands in low to mid-elevations, preferring the warmth. Though they favor lower elevations, they can survive in the higher elevation of semi-desert and forests; and with their adaptabilities, they do well in the suburban and agricultural applications as well. Being primarily nocturnal, white-footed mice are generally solitary and territorial and their range often overlaps. Because white-footed mice are prey animals to predators such as weasels, snakes, owls, hawks, falcons, and red foxes, they are primarily active at night and are constantly on high alert to avoid them. These mice are adept swimmers and climbers, and have an incredible sense of direction, and can find their way within a two-mile radius.
What Do White Footed Mice Eat?
White-footed mice are omnivorous; eating nearly anything including seeds, nuts, grains, fruits, fungi, and insects. These mice will prepare for winter by collecting and storing a supply of seeds and nuts in the fall. Additionally, white-footed mice are also known to eat leaves, bark, stems, and flowers. However, white-footed mice can have their uses when they stay out in the wild. Because they do consume various types of fungi in their diet, they help disperse the spores of these fungi through their droppings. One such spore they help spread is mycorrhizal fungi, which provide nutrients to the trees through their roots. White-footed mice are also known to eat harmful insects such as gypsy moths and do not pose any real threat to crops.
White Footed Transmit Lyme Disease & Damage Property
Like many rodents, white-footed mice can present a problem if they look for comfort in your home or business. They carry bacteria that result in diseases that are spread through their feces. Not only can they potentially spread harmful diseases such as hantavirus as well as Lyme disease via infected ticks, but when they are in homes they will gnaw through structures, electric wiring, and other utility lines foraging for food and nesting materials.
Mice Rodent Inspections, Control, Removal & More in Round Rock, Leander, Pflugerville, Cedar Park & Austin Texas
But no matter their benefits in the eco-system, if they intrude into homes and business it is essential that you take your to action and recruit professional assistance before they harm your health or destroy your home or business’s structure. White-footed mice can reproduce fairly quickly. They can have 2-4 litters a year and each littler averages five younglings. Gestation is only 22 days and by day 44 females are capable of reproducing. If you believe you have white-footed mice infesting your Austin, Texas home or business, call in the professionals of A-Tex Pest Management and let our specialists get started on removing them.