rock mousen.
/ˈrɒk maʊs/, U.S. /ˈrɑk ˌmaʊs/ 1. Any of several Eurasian rodents of the family Muridae inhabiting rocky areas; spec. †(a) a rodent occurring in Siberia (not identified) (obsolete); (b) the broad-toothed field mouse, Apodemus mystacinus, a large grey mouse of south-eastern Europe and western Asia (rare).
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1791 New Syst. Nat. Hist. I. 517 The rock mouse is about four inches long.
1855 T. G. Bradford Murray's Encycl. Geogr. (rev. ed.) II. 467 The Quadrupeds more particularly belonging to Siberia are the following:..Arvicola œconomis. Economic Field Mouse. Arvicola saxatilis. Rock Mouse. [etc.]
1980 G. Corbet & D. Ovenden Mammals Brit. & Europe 58 Rock mouse. Apodemus mystacinus. Large and greyish but much smaller than Ship rat..and feet more slender.
2.
a. Any of various African rodents inhabiting rocky areas; spec. (a) = rock rat n. 2(a); (b) = rock rat n. 1b(c); (c) any of several small nocturnal mice constituting the genus Petromyscus (family Muridae or Nesomyidae).Namaqua rock mouse: see the first element.
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > superfamily Myomorpha (mouse, rat, vole, or hamster) > [noun] > family Muridae > genus Mus or mouse > other types of
rock rat1781
rock mouse1843
pouched mouse1853
coffee-rat1859
bush-rat1867
brown-footed rat1884
rex1928
1843 J. E. Gray List Specimens Mammalia Brit. Mus. 122 The Rock Mouse. Petromys typicus, A. Smith... S. Africa, Namaqua... S. Africa, mouth of the Orange River.
1951 A. Roberts Mammals S. Afr. 481 Aethomys namaquensis namaquensis (A. Smith). Namaqua Rock Mouse. Golden Rat.
1960 R. F. Logan Central Namib Desert (U.S. Nat. Acad. Sci.) vii. 147 (table) Petromyscus bruchus... Rock mouse.
1990 D. Attenborough Trials of Life iii. 623 In South Africa, little rock mice collect nectar from—and pollinate—some species of Protea.
b. Any of several American deer mice of the genus Peromyscus (family Muridae or Cricetidae).
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the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > order Rodentia or rodent > superfamily Myomorpha (mouse, rat, vole, or hamster) > [noun] > family Muridae > genus Peromyscus (deer-mouse)
white-footed mouse1827
deer-mouse1840
vesper mouse1859
old-field mouse1898
rock mouse1904
whitefoot1912
1904 G. G. Elliot Land & Sea Mammals Middle Amer. & W. Indies 207 [Peromyscus] mexicanus... c.—saxatilis (Peromyscus)... Rock Mouse.
1976 D. Blood Rocky Mountain Wildlife i. ii. 122 They are not typically Rocky Mountain species. These include..pinon mouse, rock mouse, white-throated and Mexican wood rats, and valley pocket gopher.
1998 Jrnl. Mammalogy 79 1131 We examined individual and population responses of the rock mouse, Peromyscus difficilis, to experimental changes in food abundance.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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